Counter Wildlife Trafficking Newsletter
April 2021
News Scan (1-30 April)
Odisha: Leopard skin seized, two arrested in Khordha | 3 April 2021
A Crime Branch Special Task Force (STF) arrested two persons for illegal possession of leopard skin in Bolagarh during a raid conducted in Khordha district of Odisha.
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Teak wood seized in Rayagada | 3 April 2021
Padampur forest range personnel seized teak wood logs near a temple at Khamapadara in Rayagada district.
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Country-made firearms, wildlife contraband seized in Kandhamal | 3 April 2021
Forest department personnel have seized country-made firearms and wildlife contraband from Dakarbadi forest near Karada under Raikia range in Kandhamal district.
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Poacher arrested, 4.5 kg bison meat and skin recovered in South Tripura | 3 April 2021
The police have arrested a poacher and recovered 4.5 kg of skin and meat of Bison at Rajnagar in South Tripura District.
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SSB jawans rescue Tokay gecko from Indo-Bhutan border | 4 April 2021
Jawans of the 37 Battalion Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) rescued a Tokay gecko during an operation along the Indo-Bhutan international border at Tanki Basti in Assam’s Udalguri district.
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6 poachers arrested in Mayurbhanj district, 12 kg deer meat seized | 4 April 2021
Forest department personnel arrested six poachers from the Kendumundi-2 reserve forest of Thakurmunda range under Karanjia division in Mayurbhanj district. Approximately 12kg of Barking Deer meat was seized from the poachers which they were distributing among themselves. Forest department personnel also seized bows and arrows from the poachers.
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Four held for killing leopard in Indore in July last year | 4 April 2021
Four people have been arrested for allegedly killing a leopard last year in Nayapura forest in Madhya Pradesh's Indore district. A CT scan of the big cat's carcass, which was found in July last year, had revealed 46 iron shrapnels, and a criminal case was registered on December 13.
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Poachers with jaw traps back in Karnataka | 5 April 2021
A recent incident of poachers caught with jaw traps and snares along with tiger and leopard skins from Nagarhole Tiger Reserve has made Karnataka forest department officials sit up and tighten the vigil. What worries the officials is that poachers have gone back to the age-old crude method of using jaw traps in the state forests, especially Nagarhole.
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Rhino killed in Jaldapara | 5 April 2021
In yet another case of rhino poaching in Bengal, an adult female was killed and its horn chopped off at Jaldapara National Park in Alipurduar. The carcass was recovered on Sunday inside the Chilapata range.
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Animals, birds hunted & cooked in open at West Midnapore fair | 5 April 2021
Animals and birds, protected under the country’s wildlife protection act, were allegedly hunted and cooked in West Midnapore’s Gopgarh Eco Park area.
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Forest officials recover over 100 Greater short-toed larks from poacher | 5 April 2021
More than 100 small brown birds, roughly the size of an adult sparrow, were found on a man arrested by forest officials in Murshidabad.
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Three arrested in Manipur for rhino poaching | 6 April 2021
The special task force (STF) of Manipur arrested three persons suspected to be members of a gang linked to the killing of a one-horned rhino at the Jaldapara National Park of Alipurduar district.
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Mumbai crime branch arrests four with red sandalwood | 6 April 2021
Unit 5 of Mumbai Police’s crime branch busted an international red sandalwood smuggling racket and arrested four persons with 1,779 kgs of red sandalwood. A crime branch officer said the red sandalwood was brought from Karnataka by road and the accused were supposed to smuggle it abroad.
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CBI takes over 3 suspected cases of elephant poaching in State | 8 April 2021
The CBI has taken over three cases of suspected elephant poaching in Tamil Nadu that occurred between 2014 and 2021 based on an order of the Madurai bench of Madras High Court.
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Birds rescued from train, handed over to forest department | 11 April 2021
Eatern Railway officials and Railway Protection Force personnel recovered 165 birds from a coach of Kalka-Howrah Netaji Express Special train (02312) at Asansol railway station.
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How wildlife trade features in the day-to-day politics of Assam | 11 April 2021
Political unrest and economic instability are feeding a thriving illegal wildlife trade in Assam’s Karbi Anglong district.
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Sea cucumber seized near Rameswaram | 11 April 2021
A special police team seized sea cucumber and impounded a goods vehicle at Vedalai near Mandapam in the district.
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Police intercept truck with two elephants at Makum in Tinsukia district | 11 April 2021
The police have intercepted a truck with two elephants at Makum in Assam’s Tinsukia district. The police have handed over the two elephants along with the truck to the Forest Department.
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Another tiger carcass found in Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve | 13 April 2021
The carcass of a male tiger, almost three days old, was found in the Manpur area of the Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve. Forest officials could not ascertain the reason for the body being mutilated—whether due to natural decay in the past three days or for some other reason.
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Poachers arrested | 13 April 2021
Two suspected poachers who are residents of Chuniajhora tea estate, located on the fringes of Buxa Tiger Reserve, were arrested after firearms were seized from them during a raid conducted by the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) and the state forest department.
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Six men caught with live pangolin | 13 April 2021
Six persons were detained while trying to smuggle a live pangolin near Gaurpadav area in Terai central forest division. The Terai central divisional forest officer Abhilasha Singh informed that the department received a tip off about some persons trying to smuggle a protected species wild animal.
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3 held for trafficking parakeets, turtles | 15 April 2021
Three youths were arrested by the Nagpur forest officials for their involvement in trafficking parakeets, and different species of turtles. Acting on a tip-off from People for Animal activist Kaustubh Gawande, Wardha, that some people are involved in selling wildlife species, forest officials formed a team pretending to be buyers.
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Two held for trying to sell leopard skin | 16 April 2021
Chhattisgarh Police on Thursday arrested two persons for trying to sell a leopard skin in Kondagaon district. The skin was packed in a plastic bag.
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Bustard poaching in Pakistan desert shocks wildlife activists | 16 April 2021
The recent shooting of two Great Indian Bustards (GIBs) in Pakistan’s Cholistan desert, with the poachers brazenly getting themselves photographed with the carcasses of birds in their hands and guns on their shoulders, has left wildlife activists in Rajasthan shocked and outraged. The GIB, which is the State bird of Rajasthan, is considered India’s most critically endangered bird.
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Illegal firearms in Kudremukh area worry cops | 17 April 2021
The rampant use of illegal and licensed weapons for hunting wildlife has become a major headache for both the police and the forest department in the Malnad region.
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One arrested for pangolin smuggling in Odisha | 17 April 2021
The Special Task Force (STF) of the Crime Branch arrested a pangolin smuggler and rescued a live pangolin from his possession. During the last one year, STF has seized as many as 12 leopard skins, 6 elephant tusks, 2 deer skins, 3 live pangolins and 5 kg pangolin scales and arrested 25 wildlife criminals.
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Two wildlife hunters from Maharashtra held in Nirmal | 18 April 2021
Two persons from Maharashtra were arrested by the Telangana Forest department officials for allegedly hunting wild animals at Patha Savli village in Kubheer mandal. Two deer and a peacock were recovered from their possession. Three more hunters are absconding.
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Exotic animal trade carries risks of disease outbreak and introduction of invasive species | 20 April 2021
There have been multiple instances in the last one year when exotic animals have been seized by different enforcement agencies across northeast India.
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Assam: Poachers kill one-horned rhino in Kaziranga National Park | 20 April 2021
In yet another incident of rhino poaching at Assam’s Kaziranga National Park (KNP), poachers have killed a one-horned rhino and chopped off its horn at the park.
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Two men arrested for poisoning tiger to death | 22 April 2021
The state forest department arrested two men on Tuesday for poisoning a tigress to death in the Singara forest range of Mudumalai Tiger Reserve (MTR) in the Nilgiris in November 2020. A tigress was found dead at Seemarkuli Odai near Aachakarai on November 20.
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Crime Branch STF seizes leopard skin, elephant tusk in Odisha, 2 arrested | 25 April 2021
The Special Task Force (STF) of the Crime Branch arrested two persons on the charges of possessing a leopard skin, two elephant tusks and other incriminating materials.
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Kadapa: 2 red sanders smugglers held | 25 April 2021
Police arrested two smugglers and recovered eight red sander logs, one vehicle, axes, iron rod, two mobile phones from their possession at Darbarpet village of Pendlimarri mandal.
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Poachers use dogs to kill 2 civet cats | 26 April 2021
Forest officials arrested 10-12 persons for poaching two civet cats in a sugarcane farm in Ving village, 10km from Karad in Satara district.
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Forest dept collects Rs 49K fine from 10 for poaching wild boar | 26 April 2021
The Tamil Nadu forest department has collected a fine of Rs 49,000 from 10 people for hunting a wild boar and having its meat.
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Pregnant tigress in Maharashtra choked to death, paws chopped | 27 April 2021
Probably in one of the most shocking incidents, a four-year-old pregnant tigress with four fetuses in her womb was brutally killed by unidentified poachers in the Mukutban forest range. The matter was kept under wraps by the forest department for more than 24 hours for reasons best known to them.
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Infographic: Jessica Luis