Kolkata is fast becoming a hub for illegal trading of animal skins. The list includes skins of Royal Bengal tigers, leopards, rare quality deer and bears.
KOLKATA: Kolkata is fast becoming a hub for illegal trading of animal skins. The list includes skins of Royal Bengal tigers, leopards, rare quality deer and bears that are sold between Rs 75,000 to Rs 1, 50,000, depending on the availability and quality of the skin.
According to deputy chief wild life warden of West Bengal forest department, V Yadav, the quantum of wildlife skin smuggling has increased in the past two years. He said that lack of proper vigilance had made Kolkata an ideal destination for such illegal trading.
According to him, lack of proper training to check wild life skin smuggling among the enforcement agencies is the main reason why such trades are taking place in Kolkata. “We will shortly arrange for special training for select police personnel in this regard,” Yadav said.
It is learnt that the forest department officers along with officers of the detective department of Kolkata Police conducted some raids in certain trading pockets of Kolkata and recovered substantial quantity of the smuggled skins.
The recovery of the skins also revealed a new modus operandi. According to Yadav, all the recovered skins had not a single bullet mark. “This means poachers have moved out of the traditional method of shooting animals and are using poisons, so that the killing operations can be undertaken more silently and without taking much risk. Most probably these poachers dump poisoned food items at places where these wild animals come to drink water,” he said.
Meanwhile, detective department sources told DNA that they are probing specific clues suggesting some high profile elite citizens of the city being linked with wild-life smuggling rackets in the city.
“Sometimes, they also use services of reputed courier companies and clearing agents,” an official said.
He also said that in Kolkata, the leopard skin fetches more money for the traders than that of Royal Bengal tigers. “Both Kolkata and the Sunderbans, the abode of Royal Bengal tigers, are in south Bengal so the transportation is easier and the cost involved is less. The leopard skins require to be transported from north and hence the costs and risks are more,” the official said.
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