India
Five Baby Orangutans Rescued in Odisha, Suspected Wildlife Smuggling Probed
By Sujit Bisoyi
Villagers near Badapai village in the Bhograi area of Odisha's Balasore district made a startling discovery on Tuesday morning when they spotted five juvenile orangutans in a nearby forest. The sighting, made around 6 am, quickly drew a crowd of thousands within an hour, prompting forest department officials to intervene and rescue the animals.
Balasore Divisional Forest Officer Pratik Prakash Indalkar confirmed that all five baby orangutans were rescued and taken to the forest office. Four of the five were found to be healthy, eating food and drinking ORS, while veterinary doctors examined and treated them under the observation of forest officials.
The exact age of the animals remains unknown, but based on their size—between 1 and 1.5 feet in height—officials believe they are juveniles. Orangutans are not native to Odisha, and forest officials are investigating how the animals ended up in the region.
Indalkar said natural migration to the Balasore forest was highly unlikely due to the absence of any corridor link, suggesting human involvement. "It must be a human-induced act. We have launched an investigation through field officials to ascertain how the primates arrived in the Odisha jungle," he said.
A formal complaint has been filed under wildlife protection laws, and the forest department is working with police to investigate possible involvement of individuals or organized smuggling networks. Odisha's forest and environment minister, Ganesh Ram Singh Khuntia, said the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB), a central government agency, would investigate the matter given suspicions of an international smuggling racket.
Forest officials have also launched a combing operation in nearby forest areas to check for other wild animals or evidence related to the smuggling operation. An official noted that further details about individual or organized involvement would emerge only after a thorough investigation. Officials described orangutan trafficking as part of a multi-million-dollar criminal industry.
Orangutans are Asia's only great apes and the largest tree-dwelling mammals in the world. They are native exclusively to the rainforests of Borneo and Sumatra, and all three orangutan species are currently classified as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List.
Forest officials said the rescued orangutans will likely be transferred to Nandankanan Zoological Park in Bhubaneswar following necessary procedures. A team from the zoo has already left for Balasore to coordinate the transfer. Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife) PK Jha said the animals would be placed in quarantine for some days upon arrival at the zoo.
Nandankanan previously housed an orangutan named Binny, who died in February 2019 at the age of 41 due to respiratory issues. Binny had been the country's only orangutan at the time, brought to Nandankanan from Pune in 2003, having originally come from Singapore. According to forest officials, orangutans typically live up to 40 years in the wild, while in captivity they can live beyond 50 to 55 years.