Man held with protected bird species

CHENNAI: A man from Tiruvannamalai district was arrested at Kodambakkam on Wednesday for selling a bird species protected under the Indian Wildlife Protection Act 1972. Forest department officials, who arrested him, also rescued 15 black-headed Munia birds.Officials said that they were on their routine morning rounds, when they found P Munniappan (23) of Kuberapatnam in Tiruvannamalai selling the birds near a cinema theatre at Kodambakkam. Munniappan was subsequently nabbed and brought to the Forest Range Office at Velachery. Inquiry revealed that he had purchased them at Tiruvannamalai for Rs 10 per bird. He would sell four birds with a cage for Rs 80 to Rs 100. As forest range officer S Davidraj put it, “Munniappan said the birds come to Tiruvannamalai from Salem. There, he made brisk business thanks to the large number of devotees thronging the temple for ‘Girivalam’.”Jewellery LootedTwo persons, under the pretext of plucking some banana leaves, barged into a house in the Avadi Tank Factory limits and robbed a woman of 19 sovereigns on Tuesday.Police said Ashwini (19) of Sriramarajulu Sampath Nagar, Velannur, was alone at home as her husband was away at work, when two persons arrived in the afternoon. The duo requested the woman to let them pluck some banana leaves from the garden in the backyard, to which she agreed. Suddenly, the duo barged into the house and tied the legs and hands of the woman, before robbing her of 11 sovereigns of jewellery. Self-immolation Bid A woman attempted to set herself ablaze in front of the house of a youth, whom she claimed to be her lover, at Chromepet on Wednesday. Police said, Anbuselvi (22) arrived at the house of Tamilvanan and doused herself with some oil.