Forest department officials exhumed bodies of 31 monkeys and 14 pigeons from Panvel. (Representative)
Eight people have been detained by the Maharashtra Forest department following the discovery of bodies of monkeys and pigeons buried in the premises of an oil marketing firm in neighbouring Raigad district, the police said.
Acting on a tip-off, a forest department team reached the premises of BPCL in Panvel's Posri area and exhumed the bodies of 31 monkeys and 14 pigeons, said Chief Conservator of Forests SR Kadam.
He said post mortem was conducted and some body parts have been sent to the Haffkine Institute, a premier biomedical research facility, in Mumbai for further examination.
A case has been registered under the Wildlife Protection Act.
Officials said of the eight people detained, seven worked with the BPCL while one was an excavator driver.