180 Schedule I Turtles seized in Haridwar - 3 Arrested

The Haridwar Forest Division of Uttarakhand Forest Department today seized 180 schedule 1 turtles in a joint operation with the Wildlife Protection Society of India under the guidance of Mr.Jairaj, Additional PCCF, Uttarakhand, who is in charge of implementation of Prevention of cruelty to Animals Act. Three persons have been arrested, out of which two are aquarium shop owners. The different species seized were Indian Tent turtle, Brown roof turtle, Indian Roof turtle and Spotted pond Turtle. These turtles were brought by the poacher from Shajahanpur in Uttar Pradesh for sale in aquarium shops in Haridwar. This poacher has been involved for a long time in illegal trade of live turtles and also crocodile babies likely for aquariums abroad. The trader was contacted for a trade deal after which he was caught at Jwalapur railway station. His statements further led to raids in shops nearby to get more material.

LEOPARD SKIN SEIZED NEAR RAJAJI PARK

A full grown leopard skin was seized from Haripur Kalan village near Motichur Railway crossing by the Dehradun Forest Division in a joint operation of the anti-poaching cell of Uttarakhand Forest Department and the Wildlife Protection Society of India. Two persons have been arrested in this matter. Further details will follow.

TWO LEOPARD SKINS AND GUN SEIZED- THREE ARRESTED

Two leopard skins and one gun was seized along with the arrest of a poacher and a trader in Mussoorie Forest Division, Uttarakhand, INDIA. The skins were seized on 19th July 2011 in a joint operation of Wildlife Trust of India and the forest department. Two persons were immediately arrested, but they managed to escape taking advantage of the tough terrain and night time. Their whereabouts were tracked and the forest department arrested both of them and send them to jail. On 27th July, the forest department was successful in arresting the actual poacher, Mr.Gulab Singh of village Bhaal, Thatyur block of Tehri district along with his licenced gun which he used for poaching the leopards. According to the accused, he had fired a leopard at night 18 months ago, thinking that a wild boar had come to raid his fields. But why did he trade the skin then? The other arrested trader is Mr.Raghubir Singh also of Thatyur. The third person arrested was the taxi driver, Mr.Sanjay Singh, according to whom his taxi had been booked from Thatyur to Mussoorie and he had no knowledge of the crime. He will have to prove his innocence in court. The villagers of the area were very helpful in getting the culprits arrested. This is a major achievement as usually villagers do not give information against their own villagemates.

COBRA SNAKE SEIZED IN RISHIKESH along with leopard skin

A live Cobra snake and a leopard skin was seized near Rishikesh in Narendra nagar Forest Division,

THREE YEARS IMPRISONMENT FOR IVORY POACHERS of Rajaji National Park

The Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate has awarded three years imprisonment and a fine of Rs.10000 to Mr. Jagdish, the main accused in the Elephant poaching and Ivory Trading case

POACHERS AWARDED SEVEN YEARS IMPRISONMENT

The Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, Alwar in Rajasthan has awarded seven years imprisonment to seven poachers and five years to one poacher in a tiger poaching case in Sariska Tiger Reserve which took place long back in 2002. The poachers convicted are Zahuru, Ramzan, Hazari, Darra, Fazru, Umardin, Sukka and Heera lal. The first two were also fined INR 1.5 lakh each and the next five were fined 80000 INR each and Heera, who got only 5 years imprisonment was also fined 30000 INR.
Though the justice has come after nearly nine years, there is still scope for the poachers to avoid jail by appealing before the Hon. District Court, then the Hon. High Court and finally the Hon. Supreme Court. Three other accused have already died. By the time the upper courts hear and finalise the judgements, it could be another 30 years!!! if the lower court took 9 years. By then there will be no officer from the prosecution who knows the case well and be able to present the case strongly.

451 live turtles seized at Bangkok airport

451 live turtles were seized from a baggage from a Bangladesh flight at Suvarnabhumi airport, Bangkok, Thailand. The offender managed to escape and did not collect the luggage. For details see http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2011/jun/02/thai-customs-turtles-suitcase-smuggled

15 more days in Judicial Custody

Wild life poacher and trader, Girish Singh of Champawat was arrested and send to 15 days remand by the Chief Judicial Magistrate. His bail application at the end of this remand period was fought against by the forest department and got it rejected, thus extending his remand for a further 15 days till 8 June. He has further appealed for bail before the District Judge, the date of hearing is on 30th May. Please see the earlier blog http://wildhimalayas.blogspot.com/2011/05/wildlife-poacher-arrested-and-send-to.html for history of the case and follow this blog for updates by clicking the 'FOLLOW'button on the right side.

Another wildlife poacher arrested from Pithoragarh

Another wildlife poacher and trader, Mr.Ramesh Ram of village Badalu, Pithoragarh was arrested today 22nd May 2011 in the early morning hours by the police with a leopard skin recovered from him. The skin was fresh and was foul smelling and had three bullet holes. Today evening, he was sent to 14 days remand in judicial custody. According to the accused, he got the skin from another person in village Rongu a few kilometers away. The increasing number of arrests and seizures show that though there has been dedicated campaign to end the crime, the trade is still flourishing due to international demand for the precious skins. Details of the present crime investigation will be posted from time to time. To keep track of these and help control wildlife crime, follow this blog.

Snow leopard photographed in Nandadevi Biosphere Reserve

Snow leopard has been photographed using a camera trap near Malari in Nanda Devi National Park, Uttarakhand, India. The photograph was taken on 10th April 2011, said Mr.B.K.Gangte, the Director of the reserve. Though several indirect evidences and direct sightings were there in the past, this is the first photographic evidence. Conservation efforts in this region has helped snow leopards to freely roam in their once forgotten territory. Blue sheep or Bharal is the main prey base, which has increased in the recent years due to anti-poaching activities by the forest department.