Post News Network
Cuttack: Elephant poachers from the state have been supplying tusks to West Bengal and foreign countries for the past several years, said sources in the state Crime Branch (CB).
The wildlife cell of CB has collected information regarding smuggling of tusks while interrogating nine elephant poachers nabbed by special operation group (SOG) personnel from a forest in Boudh district.
CB sources said Manoranjan Pradhan of Purunakatak and Gopal Nayak of Narasinghpur were the kingpin of the nine-member elephant poaching gang.
“The gang had killed a tusker in a forest in Boudh district recently and collected around tusks weighing 20 kg. They had planned to transport the tusks to an ivory trader for `5 lakh,” said special director general of police (crime) Bijay Sharma.
Sources said Pradhan and Nayak have informed CB officials that a few elephant poaching gangs are active in Narasinghpur, Satakoshia, Similipal and Redhakhol forests of the state.
“We have information that poachers are smuggling tusks and elephant bones to West Bengal and some countries abroad. Members of an inter-state racket are working as middlemen between poachers of Orissa and ivory traders in West Bengal,” Sharma said.
According sources, a poacher gang led by Ezzaminyia has been active in Narasinghpur and Satakoshia forests for the past couple of months. “Poaching of elephants had come down in Narasinghpur and Satakoshia forests after the arrest of Afzal Baig last year. We have information that Ezzaminyia’s gang is active in Narasinghpur area now,” Sharma said.
CB officials, meanwhile, blamed a few unscrupulousdishonest officials of the forest department for the rise in elephant poaching. “Elephant poachers used to set up temporary camps in various forests of the state and track the movements of tuskers. Though forest department officials are quite aware of the activities of poachers, they seldom take any action in this regard,” said a CB official.
