Assam YouTuber booked for bid to sell parakeets on channel
The Hindu
The Kokrajhar police and Kachugaon Forest Division caught the youth following a complaint by the PETA India
GUWAHATI
Police and forest officials in western Assam’s Kokrajhar district booked a YouTuber for capturing parakeets from the wild and putting them up for sale on his YouTube channel.
Acting on a complaint by the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India, the officials also seized two parakeets from his possession.
The special operation against the YouTuber named Jahidul Islam was carried out in the district’s Gossaigaon district. The name of his channel is Jahid Lifestyle.
PETA India lodged a formal complaint to Assam’s principal chief conservator of forests and the divisional forest officer of Kachugaon. A preliminary offence report was registered by the Kachugaon Forest Division under relevant sections of the Wildlife (Protection) Act of 1972.
Parakeets are protected under Schedule IV of the Act and capturing, keeping, or selling them is a punishable offence.
In the videos, the YouTuber and his accomplices are seen entering forested areas, climbing trees to reach the nests of the parakeets, and capturing them. The video shows him feeding a mixture of processed sugary biscuits and water to the baby parakeets – contrary to their natural diet – on the pretext of creating “educational” content on how to raise and feed parakeets.