Lakhimpur Kheri (UP), Jun 7 (IANS): Two armed Nepalese poachers have been arrested by a patrolling team of the Dudhwa forest department in Sathiana range of the reserve, following a brief encounter.

Manoj Sonkar, deputy director, DTR (core), told reporters that, "The two poachers were carrying country-made guns and opened fire at the patrol team, who returned fire. A forest guard, Shiv Kumar, showed exemplary courage and arrested them. They have been identified as Budhdhiram Lama, 35, and Ayet Bahadur Lama, 27, of Kanchanpur in Nepal."

During questioning, they said they had entered the forest area to hunt a wild boar or deer. The two have been booked under relevant sections of the Wildlife (Protection) Act and sent to jail.

The Sathiana range falls in the core area of the reserve, where there is a sizable population of tigers, leopards and some other animals of endangered species. The accused are being questioned by the department.

Earlier this year, two youths were arrested while crossing the Indo-Nepal border with tiger skin and bones in a joint operation by the Sashastra Seema Bal and forest department.