Army men in chinkara hunt row

Army men in chinkara hunt row

Investigations have been launched into allegations that some army men went hunting and killed a chinkara close to Jodhpur in Rajasthan on August 18.

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Rajasthan's principal chief conservator of forests, R.N. Mehrota, said, "Hunting certainly took place and villagers are alleging it was a chinkaara. We have registered a case against unknown army personnel and an inquiry is on to establish if it was a chinkara."

The Jodhpur-based Desert Corps has instituted an inquiry into the incident. Lieutenant Colonel R.K. Palta, the Defence Ministry spokesperson in Jodhpur, told the Hindustan Times, “A few villagers had alleged that army personnel had fired at an animal near Keru. Senior army officials, including the military police, visited the site for preliminary inquiries.” The army claims that the carcass found at the site resembles a rabbit mauled by a wild animal.

The government and some environmentalists have, however, taken a dim view of the incident. A. Raja, minister for environment and forests, told HT, “I will take up the matter with both the Rajasthan government and the army authorities.” Prominent filmmaker and environmentalist Mike Pandey said, "The force should act more responsibly.”