Wildlife smugglers take post office route to transport animal parts

At least 50 – 60 cases are being detected almost every year... sometimes live animals are also being smuggled TILOTAMA VARMA, addl director, Wildlife Crime Control Bureau

NEWDELHI: From live snakes and crocodile hatchlings to feathers, skulls and antlers, wildlife parts and species are being smuggled out of India and into the country. And their traffickers are sending them in shipments routed through the national capital’s foreign post office as well as private courier services.

In the past three years, the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB), an arm of the ministry of environment and forests formed to combat organised wildlife crime, has intercepted more than 150 such shipments. “At least 50 – 60 cases are being detected almost every year from the foreign post office in Delhi and private courier services. Even though in most of the cases animal parts are smuggled, sometimes live animals are also being smuggled. At least two such cases have been detected since 2017,” said Tilotama Varma, additional director of WCCB. In August 2017, WCCB was informed about a movement noticed in a parcel passing through an X-ray machine. An inspection revealed that at least two crocodile hatchlings and a ball python were being smuggled into the country. The parcel had come from Indonesia. Another parcel detected later contained at least seven snakes.

Bird feathers are a popular item for smuggling across the border. “Feathers of birds such as the red jungle fowl, grey jungle fowl, white breasted kingfisher and peafowl are illegally sent out in parcels. Normally they are declared as handicraft products,” said a senior WCCB official who didn’t want to be named.

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