Two arrested for poaching

TT, Alipurduar, March 28: Forest officers of Buxa Tiger Reserve arrested two men who had allegedly killed a gaur and were found collecting its flesh last evening.

Pradeep Gurung, 35, and Durba Alley, 32, both residents of Acchapara Tea Estate of Kalchini block, were remanded in judicial custody for 14 days after they were produced in the additional district magistrate's court here this afternoon.

According to forest sources, during patrolling in Adma 2 compartment of the BTR around 5pm yesterday, guards saw two men cutting the carcass of a bison.

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The foresters said preliminary investigation revealed that the duo had killed the animal to sell its meat in a nearby market for money.

Ujjwal Ghosh, the field director of the BTR, said: "The forest staff rushed to catch the poachers after getting the information and caught them red-handed. The arrested duo were carrying sharp weapons. We are keeping a close watch on the forest and have restricted the entry of cattle inside the forest."

The duo admitted to killing the animal during interrogation, the sources said.

A forest officer said there were other persons also with Gurung and Alley but they had escaped with some flesh.

The entry of poachers in the BTR during the ongoing elephant census has raised the question of security of the animals, the sources said.