GoI hails KURMA mobile app to conserve Indian turtles
On July 19, 2020, the Union Environment and Information Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar hailed “KURMA” application to track and report Indian turtles.
Highlights
The KURMA app was launched in May 2020 on World Turtle Day. The application was developed by Indian Turtle Conservation Action Network (ITCAN), The ITCAN was joined by Wildlife Conservation Society-India. The application provides database to identify a species. Also, it helps to locate the nearest rescue centre for turtles across the country.
Indian Turtle conservation Action Network
The ITCAN was formed to launch citizen-science initiative. It provides platform to exchange vital information on turtles, provides assistance to enforcement agencies, forest departments, etc. It will also help in observing 2020 as the YEAR OF THE TURTLE.
The World Turtle Day is marked by the Turtle Survival Alliance as well.
Turtle Survival Alliance
The alliance was formed in 2001 in partnership with the International Union for Conservation of Nature for sustainable management of tortoises and turtles. The alliance arose in response to the Asian Turtle Crisis. The Asian Turtle Crisis is the unsustainable harvest of turtles to supply to Chinese markets.
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