8 'sacred' turtles of Tripura temple die

AGARTALA, March 20 ? Considered to be sacred, eight hoary turtles inhabiting the lake of the Tripureswari temple in Udaipur in South Tripura district, have died mysteriously in the last few days, reports PTI. The Fisheries Department quoting environmentalists said on Tuesday that the turtles, fed by devotees seeking blessings at the ?peeth?, might have choked on polythene bags and waste dumped by people living nearby and business establishment. The tradition of turtles living in the lake dates back to the time of the 17th century king of Tripura, Kalyan Manikya Bhadur, who first released the species into the waters, the priest of the temple said. Temple sources also said that over 160 turtles living in the lake, a big draw for tourists, died of undertermined causes in the past one year and that their very survival might be at stake. There might, however, be another cause for the deaths. Since the arrangements for mating by the turtles were unscientific, their inability to lay eggs could trigger a reaction in their bodies causing death, experts said. Fisheries Department sources said that the matter was being looked into and necessary steps would be taken to preserve the surviving turtles.