The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, under the Ministry of Finance, has arrested thirteen people across six operations conducted over ten days in a nationwide effort to stop illegal wildlife trafficking. The operations resulted in the recovery of two leopard pelts, 180 live Indian star tortoises, 12 live tokay geckos, approximately 24 kilograms of pangolin scales, and 500 grams of tiger bones.
What was seized and where
On 7 September 2026, DRI officers in Jeypore, Odisha, recovered one leopard pelt from a person they intercepted. The same day, near Gandhinagar in Bengaluru, officers found 180 live Indian star tortoises hidden in cloth covers inside someone’s baggage. Also on 7 September, a truck stopped in Ri-Bhoi district, Meghalaya, yielded 14.68 kilograms of dried pangolin scales packed in carry bags.
Between 5 and 6 September, DRI coordinated with the Forest Department in Sidhi, Madhya Pradesh, and arrested four people, recovering one leopard skin from two of them travelling in a vehicle. A follow-up operation identified two more members of the trafficking network. On 5 September in Keokhali, Assam, officers recovered 12 live tokay geckos from two people. An earlier operation on 28 August in Karbi Anglong district, Assam, resulted in the seizure of approximately 9 kilograms of pangolin scales and about 0.5 kilograms of tiger bones with skull and teeth from three people in a vehicle.
All the animals and animal parts recovered are protected under Schedule I of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972. Pangolins are additionally listed under Appendix I of CITES, the international treaty governing wildlife trade. The tokay gecko appears in CITES Appendix II. All seized items and arrested persons were handed over to relevant state forest departments for further investigation and legal proceedings.
What this means for you
These operations demonstrate that India’s enforcement agencies are actively tracking and stopping the smuggling of endangered species and protected animal parts. If you come across illegal wildlife trade or trafficking, reporting it to forest departments or revenue authorities can contribute to these enforcement efforts. The seizures also highlight that buying, selling, or possessing protected wildlife or their parts is a serious criminal offence under Indian law, regardless of whether the animal is alive or in processed form.