10 July 2021

A joint team of Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB) and Odisha and Chhattisgarh forest departments busted an inter-state smuggling racket with the arrest of six people on Saturday.

Based on reliable intelligence input, a central forest team, M Rampur Forest Range Officer Asit Das, and officials of Chhattisgarh Forest Department conducted a joint raid in Kalahandi district on Friday. They stopped a motorcycle at the Palam area and seized three tiger skins and tiger teeth from the vehicle.

Notably, the forest officer posed as a customer and apprehended four smugglers while striking a deal for the sale of the skins.

Four out of six accused were identified as Manoj Behera of M Rampur, Narottam Bhoi of Narla, Rangacharan Bhoi of Bafla and Kartik Rana of Amath.

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