The officials of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has seized
two elephants ivory tusks weighing 21.63 kg in Srivilliputtur in the southern Virudhunagar district
of Tamil Nadu on Tuesday evening.
The seizure was made based on specific tip off and three, people were detained in this connection, DRI said.
An official release here today said based on specific intelligence that a gang involved in the illegal
wildlife trade was attempting to sell two nos of Elephant Tusks (Ivory) which are covered under
Schedule I of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 near Srivilliputhur, an intricate plan was formulated
by officers of DRI Chennai to intercept and apprehend the items along with the gang.
Upon reaching the designated spot, the officers identified three persons (sellers) carrying a large
bag suspected to be containing the said elephant tusks and were seen behaving in a suspicious
manner. Immediately, the officers made a quick interception of them and apprehended the three
persons along with the bag containing two elephant tusks.
The two elephant tusks totally weighing 21.63 kgs were recovered and seized as per the newly amended Section 50 of the Wildlife Protection Act (WPA).
The seized tusks and the three persons who have committed the offence under the WPA were handed over to the Tamil Nadu Forest Department post-seizure for further necessary action.
It is worth mentioning that DRI officers who are in the forefront in carrying out anti-smuggling and counter-trafficking measures across international borders were empowered by the newly amended Wildlife Protection Act from April 1, 2023 to seize wildlife items that are being illicitly traded inside the country.
Since then, the DRI Officers have been active in making seizures of illegally traded wildlife items across the country.
It may be recalled that in June 2023 also, Chennai DRI seized 2 elephant tusks weighing 4.03 kgs and apprehended seven members of a cartel who were handed over to the Forest Department of Tamil Nadu.
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