New Delhi: On Sunday, May 13, 2001 one of the largest seizures of birds took place at Delhi International Airport, when 1,200 red munias (also known as Avadavats) and 33 Alexandrine parakeets were seized from Mahendra Pratap, who was smuggling them to Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The accused had declared them to be captive-bred finches, which can be legally exported, and he brandished a government document saying so.

Indian customs officials contacted WTI officials and a quick verification revealed the truth. Under interrogation, Pratap confessed that the birds were caught in the wild, for smuggling to markets in Sharjah and Dubai.

The birds were tightly packed in steel-mesh cages. Some had already died, and many more would have died during their air journey. The accused was remanded to judicial custody, pending a trial.

Export of all wild-caught birds from India is banned. Over the past twelve months, two separate seizures of falcons have taken place in India. Smuggling of wild-caught birds continues to be a problem.