Suddenly, the wildlife department of Delhi Government has been flooded with reports-made by farmhouse owners themselves in most cases-of blackbucks having ``accidentally'' intruded on their premises.Consider the case of a resident of Jehangirpuri who, a few days ago, called up the office of the Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) to inform them about a blackbuck in a school building. The SPCA officials came, with wildlife officials in tow, and took away the antelope.

The officials, however, alleged that enquiries from the school staff and other residents revealed that the animal was in custody of the person who complained formonths.The fact that even a voluntary disclosure of keeping a blackbuck can invite one-year imprisonment under the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act-this particular antelope being a Schedule (1) animal- has led to a spurt in such ``accidental sightings''.

Among those who have reported seeing blackbucks in and around their west Delhi farmhouses are a leading city lawyer and a bureaucrat. Though the animals have been taken away, the officials say they have not closed the case files. ``We are probing the matter from all angles,'' they said.Officials recently seized two blackbucks near the Andheria More farmhouse of Trade Fair Authority of India (TFAI) chairman Yogesh Chandra.

The matter is being pursued.The officials also swooped down on a farmhouse at Nazafgarh and seized two blackbucks in the past fortnight. So far, however, only the caretaker of the farmhouse has been booked and sent to Tihar Jail in judicial custody. The owner is reportedly untraceable.

Enquiries reveal that it is not at all difficultto become the proud owner of a blackbuck for as little as Rs 5,000. Till the Salman Khan episode spoilt it all, it was a raging fad among the farmhouse owners.The first clue came 15 days ago when the Operation Cell of Delhi Police arrested a Meerut resident, Mohsim Ali, with a tiger and a leopard skin. During interrogation, the alleged poacher reportedly revealed that selling blackbucks to Delhites has been his main business all these years.