4 Arunachal govt employees arrested with leopard skin, bones

The employees had contacted a buyer and planned to sell the skin and nearly 5 kgs of bones for Rs 3 lakh.

Updated on: May 19, 2017, 21:21:35 IST

Hindustan Times, Guwahati | By Utpal Parashar

Prefer HTon Google

Share via

Copy link

Four employees of the Arunachal Pradesh government have been arrested in Assam and recovered a leopard skin and bones from their possession, forest department officials said on Wednesday.

Preliminary investigations suggest the government employees were involved in poaching. (HT File Photo)

Forest officials said the accused, posted with Arunachal Pradesh health department, were arrested from the Dafalagarh tea garden in Biswanath district on Tuesday evening.

“The accused had contacted a buyer and had planned to sell the skin and nearly 5 kilos of bones for Rs 3 lakh. Two motorbikes, which they were using, have also been seized,” a forest official told journalists.

Preliminary investigation suggests the accused may be involved in poaching as well and the recovered skin and bones could be from a leopard killed inside Kaziranga National Park in Assam.

Last November, forest officials had recovered skin of a Royal Bengal tiger poisoned to death inside Manas National Park in Assam following the arrest of a former National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB) militant.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Utpal Parashar
A seasoned senior journalist, I have nearly three decades of experience across print, digital, and online platforms, covering political transitions, insurgencies, environmental issues, and development stories in India and Nepal. I am skilled in breaking news, leading editorial teams and launch of newspaper editions. I am adept at leveraging digital trends and social media to expand global reach, with a strong ethical foundation and a reputation for impactful journalism. An alumnus of Asian College of Journalism, I joined Hindustan Times in New Delhi as a trainee reporter in May 1997. Over the years, I have been posted in Dehradun, Kathmandu (Nepal) and Guwahati. Currently, as Senior Assistant Editor at Hindustan Times, I lead a team reporting on India’s northeastern states. My work involves in-depth analysis, and engaging multimedia storytelling across formats, including text, photo, video, and interactive content. I am skilled in producing timely, shareable content, leveraging digital platforms and social media to engage global audiences. Throughout my career with the Hindustan Times, I have led diverse editorial teams, designed capacity-building activities, and supported reporters in developing strong story ideas, ethical reporting practices, digital skills, and fact-checking techniques. As Senior Assistant Editor for Northeast India, I have been responsible for guiding correspondents through complex political, humanitarian, and community-level stories using multimedia formats. Earlier, as Foreign Correspondent in Nepal, I produced extensive reporting during Nepal’s democratic transition and the 2015 earthquake and its aftermath.Read More

Get the latest India News, breaking headlines and real-time updates from across the country. Stay informed about politics, government policies, crime, weather and major national developments.