News
Andhra Pradesh: Bear cubs between the devil and the deep canal!
April 15, 2008, 6:11PM MT
By Sharon St. Joan
Wildlife SOS arrives before daybreak!
Wildlife SOS arrives before daybreak!
By Vasudha Mehta, Communications Officer, Wildlife S.O.S.
Two young Sloth Bear cubs, both infants under twelve weeks of age, have been rescued from poachers by the Andhra Pradesh Forest Department and Wildlife S.O.S. The Sloth Bear cubs (one male and one female), found severely traumatized and dehydrated, were rescued from a poacher-trader in the Pedapalli region.
The poacher-trader, Malang Shah, aged 23, has been sent to Judicial Custody. The cubs are presently being taken care of at the Wildlife S.O.S - Bear Rescue Transit Facility at Hyderabad as per the directives of the First Class Magistrate at Pedapalli Courts (Karim Nagar District, Andhra Pradesh).
Barely 60 days after Wildlife S.O.S rescued a two-week old from a poacher in Orissa, on February 15, 2008, Wildlife S.O.S's surveillance network, Forestwatch, (run in association with One Voice, France) received an intelligence report from a team member in Andhra Pradesh about two young bear cubs having been clandestinely brought into the Karim Nagar district in the state. Soon after receiving the information, a decoy was sent in to confirm the information, and a second informer was put on duty to ensure that the poacher in possession of the young bear cubs didn't dispose of them, out of fear of being under surveillance.
Information about the cubs and their location at Karim Nagar was confirmed on the morning of February 16. News that came with this information was that some buyers from neighbouring villages were expected to arrive in the morning of February 17 at the trader's house to purchase these cubs and possibly sell them off to middlemen for the bear paw soup trade, which is a delicacy in some South East Asian countries. This information necessitated a prompt response from Wildlife S.O.S and the Andhra Pradesh Forest Department. Under the circumstances, the operation had to be carried off before daybreak on February 17.
Wildlife S.O.S relayed the intelligence received to the PCCF (Wildlife Department) and Chief Wildlife Warden, Andhra Pradesh - Mr. Hitesh Malhotra, India Forest Service, who immediately organized two teams of Forest Department personnel at Karim Nagar, while keeping the details of the operation confidential. At the Chief Wildlife Warden's request, the three member Wildlife S.O.S anti-poaching team reached Hyderabad on the night of the 16th and then went on to Karim Nagar (200 kilometers away) arriving at 3 AM on February 17.
There, Mr. Rizwi, Conservator of Forests, Karim Nagar and Forest Department Officers - Mr. Raja Rao and Mr. S.K Gupta - had a twelve member raiding party of forest officers on call. A brief meeting later, a convoy of three vehicles with two jeeps belonging to the Andhra Pradesh Forest Department and one with the Wildlife SOS anti-poaching team made their way to Peddapali, the place where the poacher-trader was hiding in a hutment.
One kilometer away from the location, all vehicles stopped, while a Wildlife S.O.S surveillance team went to ascertain the precise location and plan the modus-operandi of the execution of the seizure after examining the geographical terrain of the location. The hutment was precariously positioned beside a very small seven-foot wide jeep track with an open canal of flowing water running on the other side. "One wrong move and the poacher could easily dump the bear cubs into the canal to drown and destroy the evidence", was the prime thought worrying the members of the Wildlife S.O.S anti-poaching team. One surveillance vehicle was positioned strategically on the seven-foot wide road, while the other two vehicles stationed themselves 400 metres away from the spot. The raiding party swiftly, but silently, made their way to the hutment in the dark.
Upon reaching the hutment, they arrested the poacher, while a swift search of his premises revealed two tiny bear cubs concealed in a basket inside a locked room. The cubs were dehydrated and undernourished.
The cubs along with the arrestee were taken to the Forest Department Headquarters in Karim Nagar and produced later in the local district Courts. Wildlife S.O.S Criminal Advocate, Mr. S.N. Vashishth, assisted in legal documentation of the case.
When interrogated, Malang Shah confessed that he had purchased the cubs from a tribal person two days back and was planning to sell them for Rs. 16,000 (USD 400 approx) in a day or two.
The Andhra Pradesh Forest Department Teams executing the seizure along with the Wildlife S.O.S anti-poaching team were led by Mohd. Kadher Mohiuddin (FRO-Special Part, Jaghital, Karim Nagar-West Division) and Syed Maqsood Mohiuddin (FRO-Flying Squad, Special Party-Karim Nagar).
According to Hitesh Malhotra, Chief Wildlife Warden, "We will leave no stone unturned to ensure such offenders are punished. The offender shall be tried under various sections of the Wildlife Protection Act 1972."
Kartick Satyanarayan, Co-founder - Wildlife S.O.S who was involved in the operation said, "The exact region from which the Bear cubs had been poached is under investigation presently. They could have been poached from the Eastern Godavri region or from neighbouring forests in Karnataka".
If convicted the poacher could go to jail for up to seven years.
Photo: Wildlife S.O.S.
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