Baripada: Two platoons of armed police will be deployed in the Similipal Tiger Reserve (STR), Mayurbhanj SP Varun Guntupalli informed on Thursday.
The armed police force, in collaboration with Forest Department officials, will conduct joint patrolling and flag marches in sensitive villages near the STR to counter poaching activities.
The move comes in the wake of the recent seizure of the skin and other body parts of a rare melanistic tiger, unique to the Similipal landscape. Forest officials seized these items from four individuals in the fringe villages of STR last Sunday.
A special enforcement wing of the Similipal South Wildlife Division had conducted a raid in Tentula village, where the tiger hide was recovered. The tiger’s nails were seized earlier from another accused in Balighat.
Authorities are intensifying enforcement measures to protect the region’s biodiversity and ensure the safety of its unique wildlife.
