MARGAO: There was a major furore in Arossim after an unidentified man drove a Telangana-registered SUV on the beach and deliberately mowed into a flock of seagulls, killing two birds in the process.
Locals, tourists and wildlife activists were left shocked at the brazen attitude of the driver of the blue vehicle bearing registration no TS12EV3333 and demanded prompt action against the culprits involved.
There were also concerns that the accused, possibly a tourist, could have left the State by now.
While the Goa Tourism Department has filed an FIR against the owner of the vehicle for reckless driving, the Forest Department said they are looking into the matter.
In the CCTV footage from the lifeguard tower, the vehicle can be seen intentionally driving towards the flock of birds and then taking a u-turn and continuing to drive on the beach despite the attempts of the lifeguards to stop the vehicle.
“The vehicle drove at full speed through the intertidal zone, as it was low tide, and ploughed through a large flock of Brown Headed Gulls (Chroicocephalus brunnicephalus) who migrate annually to Goa’s shores for the winter from the Himalayas. The birds were resting on the shoreline near the water’s edge, when the vehicle ran over them at high speed; while most of the birds were able to fly away, two of them got hit by the wheels” read the report by the lifeguards from Drishti Lifesavers.
“One of them died instantly and the second one was injured. As per the first response protocol, the lifeguard reported the incident to the stranding network coordinator, who in turn informed the Forest Department, who sent a veterinarian to assess the injured sea gull. However, as soon as he reached the location, the bird succumbed to its injuries,” the report added.
It further mentioned that the speeding vehicle also drove in circles on the beach near a star hotel.
“The vehicle almost hit the on-duty lifeguard as the vehicle kept speeding despite the lifeguards and tourist warden asking the driver to stop,” said Puja Mutra, Goa Marine Wildlife Stranding Network (GMWSN) coordinator.
“It’s hard enough when dolphins and sea turtles wash up with plastic in the stomach or as victims of bycatch but a lot of that is accidental. This kind of targeted killing of an animal in its own habitat and damaging the environment just for entertainment is criminal’,” she added.
Mitra further lamented that driving on the beach, which is a wildlife zone, damages the habitat of shore birds, crabs, molluscs and other marine organisms of the beach ecosystems.
