With the nexus between the forest official and poachers coming to the fore, Assam’s prominent wildlife organisation Nature’s Beckon has renewed its demand for a CBI probe into the cases of poaching and other wildlife crimes in Assam in the last few years.
The nexus between poachers and a section of the guards, particularly in Kaziranga national park came to the fore after police have arrested four lower rank staff of the forest department since last Sunday for their alleged involvement in helping the poachers in killing the one-horned rhinos.
“The recent arrests have proved the truth, which we have been highlighting for last several years. There cannot be rhino poaching in Kaziranga and other protected areas of Assam without the involvement of forest officials. Now that the nexus came to the light gradually, the lower rank officials of the park and forest department are being blamed. We believe that there are hands of some senior forest officials in rhino poaching and this must be probed thoroughly,” said Director of Natures’ Beckon, Soumyadeep Datta.
“The poaching of one-horned rhinos in Assam is a serious issue and this is the reason we have been demanding a CBI probe into all the cases of rhino poaching in Assam. Although the government of Assam had requested the CBI to probe cases of rhino poaching in 2014, only selected cases have been handed over to the Central investigating agency,” he said.
While the poachers have killed eight one-horned rhinos, mostly in Kaziranga national park, over 15 of the rare pachyderm were killed last year. In 2014 over 40 one-horned rhinos have been poached in Assam and most of the klilling took place in Kaziranga national park.
The Nature’s Beckon has also revived its demand for having a forensic probe into the rhino horns, elephant tusks and other animal parts kept in the custody of the forest department to ascertain their genuineness as well as to ensure that those have not been replaced by fake ones.
“The one-horned rhinos, which are the identity of Assam have been killed unabated and the government is a mute spectator,” Datta said while adding that only a high level probe by the CBI would help stop poaching and would expose those who are involved in the crime.