The Forest officials here have set free 220 parrots in the Pamban reserve forest area, said District Forest Officer Hemalatha here on November 18.
According to the DFO, as per the Wildlife Act of 1972, it was an offence to possess parrots, grey partridge, emerald doves and others in domestic dwellings. The State government had recently announced in May to voluntarily surrender such birds to the forest department.
As the wings were cut, many of the seized birds were nurtured by the forest department and freed in the reserve forest.
Ramanathapuram District Collector B. Vishnu Chandran and other officers from the Revenue and Forest Department also participated in the event. Later, the DFO told media persons that the public was welcome to hand over such birds with them on their own.
In the event of a seizure, the accused would be punished as per the laws, she warned.