A one-month-old leopard cub on Saturday was rescued from the baggage of a passenger at Chennai International Airport.
In a statement issued in Chennai, the Commissioner of Customs Rajan Chaudhary said officers of Air Intelligence Unit (AIU) noticed Kaja Moideen who flew in from Bangkok by Thai Airways moving in suspicious manner and was in a hurry to get out.
The officials also heard a trill sound coming from his bag. When queried, Moideen remained evasive.
The officials opened the bag and found a pink plastic basket in which a weak leopard cub was found in a state of shock.
The customs officers fed the cub with milk in a feeding bottle. The officials of Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB) identified the cub as leopard cub of "Panthera pardus" specie.
Meanwhile, a vertinery doctor from Arignar Anna Zoological Park who had arrived said it was an one month old cub weighing about 1.1kg measuring 54cm from nose to tail.
The leopard cub and the Moideen were handed over to Tamil Nadu Forest Department for further action, Chaudhary said.
According to the statement, the cub will be rehabilitated at the Arigna Anna Zoological Park and action would be taken against Moideen under Wild Life Protection Act, 1972.
This is the first time the customs officials seized a leopard cub. The officials have seized star tortoise, different types of snakes and other animals in the past at the airport.
(With inputs from agencies)
