Mumbai: With two attacks on tigers by poachers in the Chandrapur district of Maharashtra, the state government has alerted its forest officials to be on the lookout for poachers from neighbouring Madhya Pradesh who have landed in the tiger reserves of the state's Vidarbha region.
Intelligence reports reveal that the poachers have already received Rs4 million as advance money to kill 25 tigers.
According to reports, last year a tiger skin fetched $20,000 and its body parts like nails, hair and bones were sold at $1200 per kg.
"Based on the information received by us, more poaching gangs from the Bahelia community of Katni, are roaming the forests mainly because of the demand from some countries (China and South-East Asia)," Praveen Pardeshi, Principal Secretary, Forest Department, told Gulf News.
"That is why we have asked forest officers to monitor all watering holes in the forests." Not only does this apply to the tiger reserves of Tadoba-Andhari but also to others such as Pench and Melghat.
He said even people living in villages near the forests have been asked to give intimation of any suspicious movement of intruders. "We have started an information campaign to apprise locals about the situation and promise rewards for information about poachers," and added that patrolling is being done round the clock by the Forest Guard Staff as well as those on Special Tiger Reserve Staff.
Kishor Rithe of Satpuda Foundation and member of National Board of Wildlife based in Vidarbha said, "I have just received news that we have lost one more tiger near Tadoba-Andhari forest reserve."
He added that the Forest Department has so far been unable to trace the poachers involved in the Palasgaon case of April 26. Two tigers were caught in the steel traps set up by the poachers. One tiger died and the other, injured, was tranquilised by the forest staff, doing the rounds of tiger census, and taken to a veterinary hospital in Nagpur.
Poachers
"The tiger found today was chopped into pieces though the skin is not missing. The Bahelia gang does not leave a single part of the tiger's body," said Pardeshi.
Rithe said he was disturbed by these incidents since poachers could kill another tiger despite "heavy security and foot patrolling."
He has demanded that Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan appoint a Special Investigation Team under the chief secretary of Maharashtra so that the poachers are nabbed within a week.
