In the biggest ever seizure of its kind in northeast India, officials in Guwahati seized a huge quantity of illegally smuggled marine life and wildlife products, including 50 kg sea fans, and arrested three persons in connection with the case, officials said on Thursday.
Forest officials said that they, accompanied by the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB), acting on a tip-off have seized smuggled marine life products from different places of Guwahati’s Nilachal hills where the famed Shakti shrine of Kamakhya Temple is situated.
According to the forest officials, the seized marine life products would be valued at several crores of rupees.
The officials said that the seized products also included parts of several endangered species of marine lives, 2 kg of broken pieces of musk pod, 43 body parts of monitor lizards, 1.5 kg of porcupine scales and spikes and other animal body parts besides 50 kg sea fans.
The three persons were arrested under the various provisions of Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972, the officials said, adding that this is the first time that marine life products have been seized in the northeast region, an area far away from the coastal regions of India and neighbouring Bangladesh.
The forest and WCCB officials first detained Rahul Choudhary (25), and based on his confession, Jitendra Saha (30) and Santosh Gupta (41) were arrested and marine life products were recovered from their possession too.
The entire operation on Wednesday evening was led by Divisional Forest Officer Rajeev Barua, Range Officer (Guwahati Range) Pankaj Kumar Borah and WCCB official Hiten Borah from Guwahati.
