3 poachers held from Odisha's Bhitarkanika

Three suspected poachers were arrested for allegedly laying nylon-wire traps to kill spotted deer and wild boar within the core area of Bhitarkanika National Park in Odisha’s Kendrapara district, an official said on Saturday.

Fifteen such traps, two nets and as many sharp weapons were seized from the spot in the protected mangrove forest at Patikhara, he said.

The suspects were booked under the Wildlife Protection Act, the forest official said.

The gang was actively indulging in wildlife poaching in the recent past, he added.