TV
In a major breakthrough, the Balasore Forest Division has busted a tiger skin smuggling racket and arrested 11 members of the group on Sunday.
Acting on a specific input, the Forest Department formed a special team and conducted raids at various locations/. During the raid, four suspects from Bhadrak and seven from Mayurbhanj were arrested.
Khushwant Singh, Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) of Balasore, stated, “We received confidential information about the trade of Royal Bengal Tiger (RBT) skin. Acting on the tip off, we formed a special team that detained four individuals in possession of the RBT skin. Preliminary investigations suggest the tiger was killed with a bullet, but forensic reports will provide further clarity.”
“The detained individuals provided details about four more suspects, leading to their arrest. These suspects, in turn, revealed the involvement of three others. In total, we managed to apprehend 11 individuals linked to this crime,” he added further.
Poaching of endangered species has been on the rise in forests of Odisha. In December, the Special Task Force (STF) seized leopard skin in Boudh and arrested one individual in possession of it. Similarly, in late November, forest officials arrested two individuals for possessing leopard skin in Kandhamal. Earlier in December, a poacher was caught for killing migratory birds in Chilika Lake.
To address the growing threat of poaching, the Odisha government has initiated the deployment of a dedicated 131-member armed police company to secure the Similipal Tiger Reserve in Mayurbhanj district. As per a notification by Additional Chief Secretary Satyabrata Sahu, the unit will be headquartered in Mayurbhanj and consist of various officers and constables under the administrative responsibility of the Mayurbhanj SP.
This initiative, funded by the Forest and Environment Department, marks the first deployment of an armed police company in India specifically for the protection of a wildlife sanctuary.
