CCTV Trail Deepens Odisha Orangutan Mystery, Probe Stretches To Sea Routes
Authorities in Odisha are investigating the discovery of five baby orangutans in a forest, suspecting an international wildlife trafficking operation. The investigation has expanded to West Bengal and involves the Coast Guard to track potential smuggling routes.
Why it matters
The incident highlights the growing threat of illegal exotic animal trafficking and the need for better cross-border environmental law enforcement.
The investigation into how five baby orangutans came to be found in a forest in Odisha's Balasore district has moved beyond the state, with teams from the Special Task Force (STF) following a CCTV footage trail to Digha in West Bengal and onward towards Kolkata, with even the Coast Guard probing possible waterways through which the animals may have entered India.The orangutans, aged between six months and a year, are at the Bhubaneswar zoo for now, being fed mashed apples, with classical music playing in the background to keep them calm.Orangutans are not native to India, and their natural habitat is mainly the tropical rainforests in Southeast Asian countries such as Indonesia and Malaysia.
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