A 10 ft dead dolphin that was found near Marine Drive in Mumbai on Tuesday. (PTI Photo)
The carcass of a 10-foot-long humpback dolphin washed ashore at Marine Drive around 4pm yesterday. Instead of informing forest department officials, BMC workers took the body to the Deonar dumpyard.
No post-mortem was carried out, even though the mammal is protected under Schedule 2 of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972. Dr Sanjay Tripathi, director, Byculla zoo, said he was not informed.
KP Singh, chief conservator of forests, Thane forest department, said, "This is a serious incident. The body should have been handed over to us, and disposed of only after a post-mortem was conducted. BMC doesn't have the authority to dispose of the body."