Articles by Joydeep Thakur
The inner workings of the illegal economy of exotic animal trade
These seizures were just the tip of the iceberg, an official of the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB) said.

Updated on May 23, 2022 11:16 AM IST
CBI files FIR in Bengal SSC recruitment case
The CBI FIR comes after the Calcutta high court earlier this week asked the central agency to probe into the alleged irregularities in the state School Service Commission (SSC) recruitment.

Updated on May 22, 2022 01:38 AM IST
Joydeep Thakur, Kolkata
SSC scam in Bengal: How RTI was used to hike marks, ranks of unsuccessful candidates
The federal agency was ordered by the Calcutta high court earlier this week to probe the alleged irregularities in the state School Service Commission. The agency has already quizzed former education minister and senior TMC leader Partha Chatterjee on Wednesday.

Published on May 21, 2022 06:30 PM IST
At Sunderbans, rise in cases of tigers straying
While the authorities have started a probe to find out the reasons behind the sharp increase, experts apprehend that with the sea level rising due to global warming and the delta being increasingly battered by cyclones, such straying is bound to increase in the future.

Updated on May 09, 2022 12:51 AM IST
Joydeep Thakur, Hindustan Times, Kolkata
Sunderban records highest number of tiger straying incidents in recent years
Experts say the increase in the number of tiger straying incidents could hit conservation efforts. The authorities of the Sunderban Biosphere Reserve (SBR) have started a probe to find out the reasons behind the sharp increase in such cases.

Updated on May 08, 2022 12:27 AM IST
Villagers turn to bees to check elephants from raiding crops in West Bengal
Wild honey from the tiger-infested mangrove forests of the Sunderbans in West Bengal is known for its purity and therapeutic uses

Updated on Apr 17, 2022 01:04 AM IST
Joydeep Thakur, Kolkata
Honey bees to ward off elephants in north Bengal from raiding crops, reduce human deaths
West Bengal accounts for the second highest number of man-elephant conflict incidents in the country after Odisha. Between 2015-16 and 2019-20 at least 430 people have been killed by elephants in the West Bengal. Most of the deaths took place in north Bengal.

Updated on Apr 16, 2022 06:05 PM IST
Siamangs rescued: Is illegal trade in exotic species booming in eastern states?
The move comes 12 days after three kangaroos were found wandering around in a forested patch near Jalpaiguri; the carcass of a fourth was found a day later.

Updated on Apr 14, 2022 11:25 AM IST
Joydeep Thakur, Silchar/kolkata
Biswa Kalyan PurkayasthaNadda forms team to look into alleged gang rape in Bengal
A 14-year-old girl died hours after she returned from a birthday party, where she was given alcohol and then allegedly sexually assaulted

Updated on Apr 14, 2022 05:17 AM IST
HT Correspondent, Kolkata/new Delhi
Didi faces Oppn, families’ ire over Birbhum killings
The eight people – most of whom were women and children – were burnt to death in a house on Monday night in Bogtui village, hours after a local Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader was killed in a bomb attack in public.

Updated on Mar 25, 2022 01:08 AM IST
, Birbhum/kolkata
Tanmay Chatterjee and Joydeep ThakurTo protect Bengal’s coastline from cyclones, forest staff to create bio-shield
In May 2021, chief minister Mamata Banerjee had set up a committee headed by river expert and chairman of the state pollution control board Kalyan Rudra, to suggest how plants could be used to protect coastal areas. The committee, however, has warned against using Vetiver.

Published on Mar 17, 2022 05:23 PM IST
Pair of endangered turtles helps India, Bangladesh plan joint conservation program
In January this year, 10 Northern River Terrapins (Batagur Baska) - one of the most endangered species of turtles in the world - were released into the wild from a breeding centre in the Sunderbans. By February end, four of them had crossed the international boundary and swum hundreds of kilometres into Bangladeshi waters.

Published on Mar 12, 2022 11:25 PM IST
Cyclone Amphan was largest source of displacement in 2020, says IPCC report
The cyclone intensified from a category 1 cyclonic storm to a category 5 super cyclone in less than 36 hours, before finally hitting the West Bengal coast on May 20, 2020. The IPCC report also hints that the lockdown, prompted by the Covid-19 pandemic, may have played a role behind the formation and intensification of the cyclone.

Updated on Mar 03, 2022 08:35 PM IST
Overnight celebrities of West Bengal
Bhuban Badyakar’s song changed his life when it was filmed and shared on a video-sharing platform in November 2021

Published on Mar 02, 2022 10:44 AM IST
I’m here for Samajwadi Party’s victory, BJP’s defeat, says Mamata in Lucknow
This is not the first time Banerjee has visited Lucknow for the SP. Ahead of the 2017 UP assembly polls, she had come to support the SP when she held an anti-demonetisation public meeting at the 1090 crossing in Lucknow. Akhilesh was the UP chief minister then.

Published on Feb 07, 2022 11:40 PM IST
UP polls: Mamata Banerjee in Lucknow, says she is here for SP’s win, BJP’s defeat
Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee will hold joint events with Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav in Lucknow on Tuesday for the UP polls

Updated on Feb 08, 2022 12:31 AM IST
, Lucknow/kolkata
Pankaj Jaiswal and Joydeep ThakurFishing cats: Is Bengal doing enough to protect its state animal?
It is included as a Schedule I species in Wildlife (Protection) Act and hence enjoys the highest level of protection equal to that of tigers, lions and elephants

Updated on Jan 28, 2022 03:11 PM IST
Palanquins carry women to hospital from remote, hilly Bengal villages
District magistrate Surendra Kumar Meena said every time a pregnant woman needed to reach the hospital for delivery, the locals would prepare a makeshift stretcher

Updated on Jan 19, 2022 12:38 PM IST
Spectre of child marriage, trafficking looms large in Sunderbans
- Subsequent investigations led to the arrest of six people, including prime suspect Nur Alam Khan, and a couple from the village of the two girls.

Updated on Jan 17, 2022 11:51 PM IST
Joydeep Thakur, Gosaba (sunderbans)
West Bengal biodiversity board attempts to bring back traditional crop varieties
The West Bengal Biodiversity Board (WBBB) has prepared People’s Biodiversity Registers containing comprehensive account of local bio-resources along with related traditional knowledge and practices of the area. Efforts are now on to come up with at least five ‘seed banks’ across the state.

Published on Jan 17, 2022 10:38 AM IST
Sunderbans losing its dense mangrove cover: Govt report
This is worrying because the mangrove forests acts a green buffer against cyclones, protecting Kolkata from bearing the direct brunt of storms that originate in the Bay of Bengal.

Updated on Jan 14, 2022 12:36 AM IST
Sunderbans losing dense mangrove cover, reveals key government report
It comes as a concern because the mangrove cover acts a barrier against cyclones while protecting Bengal’s capital city of Kolkata from directly bearing the brunt of storms that originate in the Bay of Bengal

Published on Jan 13, 2022 03:24 PM IST
The growing rift between the BJP and its Matua leaders
- The quest to control the Matua vote, a scheduled caste group, largely hinges on the issue of identity and rights

Updated on Jan 06, 2022 07:29 PM IST
No direct flights from the UK to land in Kolkata from Monday, orders West Bengal
West Bengal has reported 11 Omicron cases so far, and the new Covid-19 cases being reported every day have doubled over the past week. On Wednesday, the state government crossed the 1,000-mark.

Updated on Dec 30, 2021 07:38 PM IST
Of those languishing in West Bengal jails for years without trial
According to Prisoners Statistics of India, 2019, 7,394 inmates in Indian jails are suffering from mental health issues and 1.5% of them are undertrials

Updated on Dec 19, 2021 04:14 PM IST
Rising CO2 level taking toll on marine organisms in Sunderbans, say scientists
The rising carbon dioxide (CO2) level in the air is turning the water in the Sunderbans estuary more acidic and taking a toll on marine fish and animals, particularly those having shells such as oysters, clams, crabs and lobsters, say scientists

Published on Nov 25, 2021 04:22 PM IST
4,000 cyber-attacks on India’s Botanical Survey website in 2 months
Botanical Survey of India director AA Mao said most of the 4,000 cyber-attacks on its website appeared to originate from China.

Updated on Nov 18, 2021 03:08 AM IST
Joydeep Thakur, Hindustan Times, Kolkata
Heroes of our time: Meet Indians making a difference
You’ve seen the pictures. You’ve heard the names. Read on to see what some of the winners who have largely remained away from the spotlight achieved and how

Updated on Nov 15, 2021 06:27 AM IST
Srinivasa Rao Apparasu Manasi DeshpandeShruti TomarUtpal Parashar Sharan PoovannaArun DevJoydeep Thakur, Hindustan Times, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Guwahati, Kolkata, Bhopal, Hyderabad
Megha SoodSunderban bears climate change brunt as world leaders negotiate at COP
- In its latest state of the climate report, the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) said that sea levels between 2013 and 2021 had risen by a factor of two, meaning sea level rises have doubled in this period.

Updated on Nov 08, 2021 02:01 AM IST
Joydeep Thakur, Hindustan Times, New Delhi
Centre may allow private funding for wildlife conservation
A proposal for private and corporate funding for India’s wildlife conservation efforts is under consideration since the available budget is insufficient

Published on Oct 19, 2021 04:34 PM IST