Guwahati: Locals in Sonapur, on the outskirts of Guwahati, intercepted a truck with a Chhattisgarh registration number ( CG02-7706o) on Monday night around 10 pm, discovering three Himalayan black bears being transported under suspicious circumstances.
Locals spotted the truck on National Highway 37 and questioned the vehicle’s occupants. The staff reportedly told them they were transporting the bears from Nagaland to Chhattisgarh.
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The truck’s staff refused to provide documentation for the animals and prevented locals from taking photographs, claiming their “bosses” had prohibited it.
“When we asked for documents, they refused and quickly drove towards Guwahati,” a local resident said.
A local from the area, added, “There were three staff members in the truck. They admitted to transporting animals before, including deer from Nagaland.”
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A top forest official said that Section 12 of the Act allows Schedule I animals to be translocated for ‘special purposes’ such as education and scientific research.
They can also be translocated for population management of wildlife without harming any wild animals and the collection of specimens for recognised zoos/museums.
However, in this case, there were no papers.
To transport any wildlife in India permission from the Chief Wildlife Warden (CWLW) of the state is required.
The CWLW is the authorized official to grant permission for the transportation of wildlife, as per the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.
Even the vehicles used for transportation were clearly customised for wildlife transportation but they seemed to be running illegally, the source said.
The three bear species exist in Nagaland which are the Himalayan Black Bear (Ursus thibetanus), Sloth Bear (Melursus ursinus) and Malayan Sun Bear (Helarctos malayanus).
All of these three species fall under the Schedule-1 of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 and are listed under the IUCN “Red” category.
This incident follows the recent transport of 20 elephants from Arunachal Pradesh to Reliance’s Vantara in Gujarat, raising concerns about the legality of animal transport through Assam.