The Forest Departments of Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh along with the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau are trying to track down the person believed to be in possession of the pelt of a tigress poached last month in the Pilibhit forest division of UP.
However, wildlife activists allege that inspite of this suspect being traced to Bijnor a couple of days after five men were arrested for poaching the tigress, the authorities did not act swiftly to nab the culprit who is now absconding.
It will be recalled that based on information provided by wildlife NGOs, the UP and Uttarakhand forest departments had conducted a joint operation and arrested five men on November 3 after they had poached a tigress in the forests of Pilibhit in UP having entered the jungles from Uttarakhand.
A wildlife activist said that soon after the five men were caught, the location of one Mohammed Umar suspected of possessing the pelt of the poached tigress was traced to Elaichipur in Bijnor, UP.
“He had kept his mobile phone on for about four days but the authorities failed to nab him,” said that activist wishing anonymity.
According to wildlife activists, the Uttarakhand Forest Department, police Special Task Force and Wildlife Crime Control Bureau had been informed in the first week of October about two persons who had entered the forests in the Khatima region of Terai East Forest division.
The names and mobile phone numbers of these two persons had also been conveyed to the authorities but though the Uttarakhand forest department conducted search for the suspects, the WCCB and STF appeared to have acted complacently.
The Wildlife Crime Control Bureau regional deputy director (northern region) Nishant Verma acknowledged that Umar’s location had been traced to Bijnor but he was not found at the said location.
“At present the five men arrested are in forest custody in Pilibhit and one of our forest inspectors is also involved in interrogating them. We are taking inputs from the UP and Uttarakhand Special Task Force in the investigation. We are trying to ascertain the whereabouts of Umar and another person suspected to be involved in the poaching,” he added.