Black SUV’s midnight trail scent in Balasore’s orangutan probe

BHUBANESWAR/BALASORE: A black Thar seen moving along the Bichitrapur casuarina forest road late Monday night, hours before five abandoned baby orangutans were found in the protected area, has emerged a big lead in the investigation into how the critically endangered, non-native species reached the coastal jungle in Balasore district.

The vehicle was captured by a CCTV camera of a shop in the forest fringe village of Badapai, while local residents also reported seeing it near the forest at around 11.25 pm on Monday night.

Forest officials have collected the footage and are examining the evidence. “The vehicle owner is being identified and will be questioned on the basis of the CCTV footage. The Forest department has intensified patrolling near the protected forest and its adjoining locations,” said Balasore DFO Pratik Indalkar.

Meanwhile, the Special Task Force (STF) of Odisha Police has begun probing how the babies reached the state. An STF team comprising three SP-rank officers visited Badapai village, where the abandoned orangutans were found. The team conducted a field-level investigation and interacted with local residents to gather clues.

STF IG Himanshu Lal told the TNIE that multiple teams had been formed to establish how the great apes ended up in the Balasore forest. “Strict action will be taken against those found involved in the illegal wildlife trade,” he said.

On the other hand, acting on a request from the state government, the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB) has also constituted a team to investigate the circumstances surrounding the rescue and ascertain whether an organised wildlife trafficking network was involved.

The orangutans, which were transported to Nandankanan Zoological Park in Bhubaneswar on Tuesday night, have been kept in quarantine. Gender identification showed that three of the infants are male and two are female, officials said. Forest and Environment minister Ganesh Ram Singhkhuntia on Wednesday visited Nandankanan to review the arrangements for the care and management of the young primates. He said the possibility of an international racket being involved in their trafficking is being probed. “All agencies will thoroughly investigate the matter,” he said.

A four-member team from the WCCB will visit the state within the next two days. It will specifically look into the modus operandi, criminal network and their link with any other case of exotic species smuggling. The team will provide assistance to the enforcement agencies involved to take the matter to its logical end at the earliest, PCCF wildlife and chief wildlife warden (CWW) Prem Kumar Jha said.

Jha said the joint task force of wildlife wing will coordinate with the STF and WCCB for a detailed investigation to track down those involved in the smuggling of the critically endangered exotic species.