Guwahati: The police in Korkrajhar in Assam have seized at least 10 pick-up trucks from the Srirampur gate loaded with broilers chicken being brought in from outside the state.
The trucks were seized along the Assam-Bengal border on Thursday and is the second incident in a week as four pickup vans loaded with broiler chicken were seized last Tuesday at the same location.
Both incidents involved “smuggling” broilers from West Bengal into Assam.
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When asked, one of the van driver’s assistants stated that they did not commit any crime as they were only shipping the broilers to Gossaigaon in Assam after loading them in Barobisha in West Bengal.
He added that they make a living from this activity as there are no other job opportunities available to them.
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On March 10, the Assam government banned the import of broilers to prevent the spread of avian influenza, which has been reported in Jharkhand and Bihar.
However, despite the ban, the transport of poultry has continued “illegally”, a police official said.