Monday, May 25, 2009Navi Mumbai: A police inquiry following the seizure of a leopard skin from two persons in Vashi last week is now being aimed at an unidentified nomadic tribe from Nagothane forests in Raigad district.
The confessions of the two arrested men, Bhikaji Ragho Mokal (55) from Pen and Pandurang Babu Bavdane (28) from Nagothane, have revealed that the duo had bought the skin from a nomadic tribe in Nagothane. The duo then tried to sell the skin for Rs 80,000, which is nearly five times the price they paid for the skin when they bought it from the tribe.
“We still don’t know the names of the persons or the nomadic tribe that the accused duo had contacted as they said in their confession that they do not know the exact location of the tribe,’’ said senior inspector of Vashi police Sudhir Chougule. He added that they are in touch with Thane forest officials about the case.
Animal activist from the Plant and Animals Welfare Society (PAWS-Mumbai) Sunish Subramanian said: “Many nomadic tribes and certain gangs in and around Maharashtra forests are actively poaching our wildlife like deer, leopards and even tigers. They are selling their parts for a profit.’’
He added that the poachers are freely using various means, from poisoning waterholes in the jungle to mechanical traps like the brutal ‘pug crunchers or spring traps’ to catch the big cats.
Conservator and director of Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP), Dr P N Munde, also told TOI: “The spring traps used by certain poachers cause a lot of pain to the animal caught, as its leg gets stuck tight as soon as it steps on the trap.’’ However, there is no reported poaching in the SGNP region.
A range official from the state forest department said that the trapped animal is immediately killed in the jungle and is first skinned as the skin is the most valuable poaching product.
“In case of a tiger or leopard, its teeth, claws, whiskers and even bones are sold in the illegal poaching market,’’ said Subramanian, adding that stringent anti-poaching laws need to be implemented to stop the animal trade.
This year itself, around 20 tigers have reported to be poached in the Tadoba Andhari forest in Chandrapur region. Earlier this week, a water body frequented by the big cats was poisoned by poachers near Bhandara range in Maharashtra, indicating intense poaching activities in the state. A notorious gang of poachers, called the Katni Gang, has been known to prowl various forest regions in the state to catch wild animals, especially the tiger.
DWINDLING NUMBERS
In 1900, the population of Royal Bengal Tigers in India was estimated to be as high as 40,000. By 1972, it had dwindled to 1,800 because of the increasing human population, indiscriminate mushrooming of industries and overhunting
According to the tiger census report released on February 12, 2008 by the National Tiger Conservation Authority, the current tiger population stands at 1,411 (that is ranging between a minimum of 1,165 to a maximum of 1,657)
