Assam: Rare Chimpanzee Species Captured in Lailapur, Cachar District

• Image Credit: Internet

• Sep 27, 2022 | Sourav Boruah

Digital Desk: The Assam
Police in Dholai was successful in seizing two rare species of chimps during an
operation in Lailapur in Assam's Cachar district. According to the police, the
chimps were most likely smuggled into Assam from Indonesia or Myanmar via
Mizoram. The smugglers attempted to smuggle the chimps through Mizoram and
Assam. According to a forest department official, these northeastern states are simply transiting points for smuggled exotic animals to other parts of the country
to be kept in private zoos or as pets in wealthy individuals' homes.

Meanwhile, the police
have launched an investigation into the growing smuggling operation that is
using the northeast as a route. Just a few days ago, on Sunday, the Mizoram
Police were successful in seizing 19 exotic animals, including six gibbons, ten
turtles, and three small monkeys, in the Assam-Mizoram border district of Kolasib.
The Mizoram Police also succeeded in apprehending four people involved in the
smuggling of exotic animals, all of whom were from Assam's Cachar and Karimganj
districts.

"Mizoram or Manipur
is simply a stopover. Assam is also not a viable option. The exotic wildlife is
being smuggled somewhere outside of the northeast, possibly for use as pets or
in secret zoos "a forest department source said in a statement

It is worth noting that
the Central Government announced a voluntary disclosure scheme in the aftermath
of the COVID-19 pandemic, a zoonotic disease that is likely to have jumped to
humans from an intermediary wildlife host species, in June 2020, urging Indians
to disclose if they have any exotic or rare species of animals in their homes
that they believe have been displaced from their native region, and
surprisingly, more than 32000 Indians had disclosed by February 2021.

Another mind-boggling fact is that the global trade in
exotic animals exceeds 19 billion dollars, and India serves as the transit
route for the majority of these exotic animals, which are smuggled from
Southeast Asian countries like Thailand and Indonesia to other parts of the
world via India.