Wednesday, November 3, 2010

India police discover elephant smuggling racket

Indian elephant
More than 100 elephants have been smuggled out of Assam in the last five years
Arrested elephant smuggling suspects
The arrested suspects were paraded before the media (Photo: Bablu Dey)
 
Police in north-east India have discovered an elephant smuggling ring which is suspected of selling scores of animals in India and Nepal.
Police in Assam said five traders were arrested and some animals due to be taken out of the state were rescued.
The sale and purchase of elephants is illegal in India but police say the trade is flourishing.
An adult elephant fetches nearly 1m to 1.5m rupees ($22,572 to $33,841) while a calf is sold for half that amount.

The rates have sharply increased over the last few years

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-11682752

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