Daijiworld Media Network – Puttur (MS)

Puttur, Oct 14: Forest officials from Uppinangady have uncovered the illegal slaughter of a large gaur by four hunters, who had turned the meat into jerky.

A raid was conducted based on a tip-off that a gaur had been shot on a farm bordering the reserve forest of Boodujaalu in Nidle village on the morning of October 11. Hunters from Shibaje and Shiradi had been waiting for the gaur, which frequently visited the farms near Boodujaalu, and shot it on the night of Thursday. The injured animal fled but was found and killed the following day.

The gaur was butchered in the forest, transported to the house of one of the accused, Raju, in a pickup truck, and processed into dry meat. The dried meat was discovered by a team led by zonal forest officer Raghavendra.

It is reported that a group of hunters regularly hunts wild animals in Nidle, Shibaje, and Shiradi, which are near the reserve forest, dries the meat, and sells it in Kerala for Rs 1,300 to Rs 1,500 per kilogram.

All accused are currently absconding, and forest officials are continuing their investigation.