Lucknow, Sep 4 (Inditop.com) Three people have been arrested for killing two spotted deer in a protected forest in Uttar Pradesh’s Bahraich district, an official said Friday.
The men were nabbed Thursday along with the carcasses of the animal following a joint operation by police and forest department officials.
“While we managed to arrest the three near the Bichiyabeet region of the Katarniyaghat forest reserve, five of their aides managed to escape,” Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) R.K. Singh told Inditop on phone.
The arrested men have confessed to have been killing spotted deer for the last five years. They used to supply the animal’s meat and skin to their clients in various districts of Uttar Pradesh, Singh added.
Spotted deer, popularly known as Chital in Hindi, is the most common deer species in Indian forests. Its coat is reddish fawn, marked with white spots, and its underbelly is white. Under the Wildlife Protection Act 1972, injuring or killing a spotted deer is an offence.
Bahraich is about 270 km from state capital Lucknow.
