[ Pisi Zauing ]
M’PEN, 19 Feb: Personnel of the Special Tiger Protection Force (STPF) of the Namdapha National Park (NNP) & Tiger Reserve, manning the M’pen gate, intercepted a person carrying something suspicious last Saturday evening.
On being searched, it turned out that the man was carrying around 13 kgs of meat of a barking deer, which had been hunted inside the national park.
The individual, whose identity has not been revealed by the forest staff, was apprehended, and is now in the custody of the police here.
An FIR has been lodged and a thorough investigation has been launched to find out the traces and involvement of other people in the unlawful act. Intelligence network, involving local population, has also been intensified.
The STPF, led by RFO T Mali, has been carrying out intensive patrolling, including night patrolling, in recent days to avert any illegal activity within the national park and its buffer zones.
“All efforts will be made to go to the roots of such acts, and involvement of any organised network links to this illegal trade will be cracked. We have zero tolerance on such cases and they shall be dealt with firmly,” the RFO said.
The operation was carried out under the guidance of NNP & Tiger Reserve Field Director VK Jawal.
