22nd Sept., 2017

From Rs 2.21-crore worth of seizures from 15 wildlife smugglers in 2014 to a whopping Rs 187.69-crore worth of seizures from 93 smugglers in 2017 so far, the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) — a paramilitary force that guards the 1,751-km Indo-Nepal and the 699-km Indo-Bhutan border — has notched up major successes in its drive against wildlife crime.

The SSB crackdown against wildlife crime has netted major cache of endangered species like tokay gecko, lizards, and prohibited items, like snake venom, tiger and leopard skins and bones, elephant tusks and ivory, rhino horn, snake sand boa, tortoise, turtle and deer, deer skin and deer meat. Recently, the SSB seized snake venom worth Rs 100 crore in West Bengal, which happens to be the most wildlife-crime-prone State with 125 cases followed by Uttar Pradesh with 54 cases.

Sources said Alipurduar in West Bengal is the main hub of wildlife smuggling. As many 98 cases of seizure had been reported from Alipurduar followed by Bahraich (15) and Balrampur (15) in UP, Udalguri (14) in Assam, Jalpaiguri (12) and Darjeeling (10) in West Bengal. Other areas of wildlife smuggling are lakhimpur Kheri in UP and Kishanganj and West Champaran in Bihar. The illegal trade also includes body parts of dead animals, like rhino horns, leopard skin and paw, deer horn and skull, rein deer skin, barking deer skin and elephant trunk.

Read full story here