Under threat

Alipurduar, Feb. 21: Two foresters, one of them a converted poacher, have killed and eaten a sambar deer in the Shiltorsha beat of Jaldapara Wildlife Sanctuary.

Forest guard Mintu Biswas has been suspended for the offence while Piyush Oraon, a temporary worker on daily wage, has been arrested.

Forest sources said Piyush, who is in his forties, was once a poacher who had been involved in a number of forest crimes. In 1991, he was brought into the forest department fold and given the job of a temporary worker.

On Tuesday, around 4pm, Mintu and Piyush entered the Jaldapara-I compartment of the Shiltorsha beat on a kunki (trained elephant). They spotted an adult sambar and Mintu killed the animal by firing at it from his gun.

The two then dragged the dead sambar on to the elephant and took it to the house of Piyush, who lives in Holong village. There they skinned the animal, divided the flesh among friends and ate it.

Yesterday, someone from Holong village disclosed the incident to forest officials and immediately, Manindra Biswas, the divisional forest officer of Cooch Behar, took action against Piyush and Mintu.

However, no steps have been taken against the beat officer of Shiltorsha or the range officer of Jaldapara North, in whose jurisdiction the poaching took place.

S.S. Bist, the chief wildlife warden of Bengal, has ordered an inquiry to get to the bottom of the matter.

“The divisional forest officer has taken action against two persons but I am sure that a few other people were also involved in it,” Bist told The Telegraph over the phone from Calcutta today.

“I have already sent P.T. Bhutia, the conservator of forests (wildlife), north, to the spot to conduct an inquiry and send me a report by tomorrow. I have told Bhutia to dig up the actual truth and make a list of the persons involved in the crime,” Bist added.