IMPHAL: A woman in Imphal West district of Manipur has been arrested for allegedly illegally selling meat of wild animals.
The arrested woman has been identified as Thani Hmar (45), a resident of Tuibong village in Churachandpur district of Manipur.
A combined team of the wildlife protection bureau, Northeast region, seized venison and wild boar meat at Lamphel supermarket complex in Imphal west district of Manipur and arrested the woman on charges of killing wild animals and selling their meats illegally, an official source said.
The combined team of the Unique Wildlife Protection Committee, Manipur; Central Forest Division, Government of Manipur, and Wildlife Crime Control Bureau, Northeast region seized meats of wild animals weighing 22 kgs – 5 kgs of deer meat and 17 kgs wild boar meat from her possession.
The meats were neatly packed with banana leaves in a large bamboo basket.
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On preliminary investigations, it was revealed that Thani Hmar has been collecting the meats of different wild animals from the interior areas of the Churachandpur district in Manipur and selling them at a shop in Lamphel super market in Imphal west district of Manipur for the past 6 months.
She sold the meat at the rate of Rs 600/- per kg.
She was arrested under the Wildlife Protection Act and is now in the custody of the Central Forest Division, Manipur government for intensive and extensive interrogations, the source added.