Dehradun: A four-member committee investigating the theft of five elephant tusks from the Laldhang forest range office in Uttarakhand has held four staff members responsible for security lapses, prompting the suspension of a forester, officials confirmed on Tuesday.
Because “some tusks were linked to ongoing legal investigations, or other wildlife works would have taken priority over this task, addressing the backlog of stored wildlife articles, chief wildlife warden Neena Grewal, principal chief conservator of forests (wildlife), said delays in incinerating the articles may have occurred. You Can Also Check: Gold Rate in Agra | Silver Rate in Agra | Bank Holidays in Agra | Public Holidays in Agra | Agra AQI | Weather in Agra | Petrol Price in Agra | Diesel Price in Agra | CNG Price in Agra | LPG Price in Agra Stay updated with the latest Agra news. Download the TOI App.
Estimates indicate that Uttarakhand currently has at least 300 elephant tusks in its custody—some held for up to 15 years. Under the Wild Life (Disposal of Wild Animal Article) Rules, 2023, the destruction of animal derivatives requires complete incineration authorised by the chief wildlife warden (CWLW) or a designated officer. The process must be supervised by a four-member committee comprising a forest officer, a gram panchayat representative, a tahsildar, and a wildlife expert, followed by a completion report submitted to the CWLW within 10 days.
Investigating team members revealed that the accused confessed to breaking open the storeroom lock to steal the tusks, adding that search operations are underway to trace other suspects currently on the run.
“On the directions of the conservator of forests, based on the committee report, the suspension order has been given to the forester in this matter till the time investigation is underway,” said Tarun S, in-charge DFO of Lansdowne forest division. The probe panel identified a range forest officer, two foresters and a contractual computer operator for administrative and systemic oversights that led to the incident. Meanwhile, a joint team of forest officials and local police apprehended a suspect belonging to the Van Gujjar community from Haridwar. Beyond establishing accountability, the probe panel highlighted critical infrastructural deficiencies. It recommended deploying round-the-clock gatekeepers and fortifying facilities where animal derivatives are mandatorily stored. It also recommended bi-annual inspection of such facilities rather than an annual check. To mitigate security liabilities, the committee suggested implementing a statewide policy to incinerate tusks recovered from naturally deceased elephants. “The NTCA guidelines state discarding the tiger derivatives if it is related to a naturally dead tiger rather than storing. A similar statewide order could be implemented for elephant tusks too as our state has a sizable elephant population,” a panel member expressed. Forest officers overseeing these facilities have warned that inadequate security and lack of continuous monitoring leave these high-value items vulnerable to theft and poaching.