Udala (Mayurbhanj): Intensifying its crackdown on pangolin smuggling racket, the Special Task Force (STF) of Crime Branch Tuesday arrested six more persons during a raid at Ambadiha village under Udala police limits in Mayurbhanj district.
The accused were identified as Agnisar Nayak (50), Lalmohan Nayak alias Chaianya alias Manmohan (45), Pratap Nayak (48), all sons of Mathuri Nayak, Keshab Dehuri (50), son of Pahala Dehuri, Gopinath Nayak (49), son of Sriram Nayak and Nakula Dehuri alias Sebakar (42) of the village.
It may be noted here that four persons were arrested and forwarded to the court in this connection three days back.
They have been identified as Balia Andhara Judia of Ambadiah colony, Udala, Debendra Das of manudiha, Bata, Janmenjay Naik of Ambadali and Raghunath Behera of Chakradhapur, Kaptipada.
Acting on reliable inputs, the STF team led by DSP TR Patel conducted a raid and arrested the accused persons. During the search, a piece of elephant tusk weighing 500 gm was recovered from the house of accused Agnisar.
Police have registered a case under Section 379/411/120 (b) IPC and under Section 51 of Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 against the six accused persons.
The arrestees have been forwarded to the court after interrogation and further investigations are on to unearth more information regarding the pangolin smuggling racket network which spreads to different parts of the country and outside.
Earlier, the STF had discovered that a chain of Pangolin trade originated from Odisha and was routed through West Bengal, Mizoram and Assam and ended in Myanmar and China.
Pangolin is a Schedule I animal and is one of the most trafficked animals in the world. While one pangolin scales are sold at a price of Rs 12,000 in Odisha, its value in international markets increases significantly.
While the Chinese pangolin, mostly found in northeast India, has been listed as “critically endangered” by the UN affiliated International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) Red List, the Indian pangolin has been listed as “endangered”, the police officer said.
Pangolins are often termed as the world’s most trafficked mammal. Pangolin scales are used in traditional Asian medicine, particularly in China and Vietnam.
The animal’s scales are made of keratin, the same material that makes human fingernails and hair, and they have no proven medicinal value. Pangolin meat is also considered to be a delicacy in some countries, and the scales are also used as jewellery and decorations for rituals.
PNN
