Odisha: On Sunday, the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB) of Jabalpur, Odisha, confiscated 14.2 kg pangolin scales from two people in Dhenkanal district. Odisha has never seen such a large seizure of pangolin scales.
Prakash Chand Gogineni, a divisional forest officer (DFO) for Dhenkanal, said the scales were seized in Damodarnali area of Kapilash range in Dhenkanal district following an intelligence input from the WCCB. Ratnakar Rout (51) and Firoj Khan (52), both from Dhenkanal town, had stored the pangolin scales at a godown in Banasinga area of Sarangi range.
‘They were collecting scales from poachers within Dhenkanal and nearby areas, but could not sell it due to the pandemic. Our team posing as customers struck a deal with the smugglers and arrested them,’ he said. A two-wheeler, as well as two mobile phones, were seized.
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The crime investigation department (CID) seized 4.82 kgs of pangolin scales from a village in Mayurbhanj district last month. Special Task Force (STF) members rescued a live pangolin from Cuttack district in April. Last year, STF seized three live pangolins and 10 kg of pangolin scales.
The Indian pangolin is a nocturnal mammal that is solitary, shy and slow moving. It is protected under Schedule I of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972. Additionally, it is listed in Appendix I of the International Convention on Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), which prohibits its commercial trade. As reported by the IUCN Pangolin Specialist Group, poaching and illegal trade in pangolin scales and meat to Asia, primarily China and Vietnam, are the main threats to pangolin populations, which have caused the species to be declining in numbers.
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