Rajnagar Forest Range personnel in the district on Friday arrested two persons and seized two stingrays (locally called Sankucha) weighing 25 kg from a fish counter near the Hansua river.
Forest officials said the arrested father-son duo identified as Sankhali Charan Majhi, a fish trader, and his son Sushanta, was held for illegally possessing and selling the endangered stingrays. Stingrays world over are threatened for their continued survival.
Rajnagar DFO (Mangrove Forest and Wildlife Division) Dr Jangyadatta Pati said that acting on a tipoff , a forest personnel team led by the Rajnagar Ranger rushed to the spot and seized the stingrays and arrested the duo.
The arrested were booked under the Wildlife Protection Act 1972 and produced before the JMFC Court of Rajnagar, from where they were remanded into judicial custody.
Stingrays are commonly found in the shallow coastal waters of temperate seas. They spend the majority of their time inactive, partially buried in sand and often move only with the sway of the tide. The stingray species is protected under Schedule 1 of the Wildlife Protection Act. Stingrays belong to the shark family and are commonly seen in coastal tropical and subtropical marine waters throughout the world.