3 poachers nabbed at Shiroda

PONDA: Forest officials on Monday nabbed three poachers in the reserve forest of Shiroda seizing from them 7 kg of civet cat meat, a locally-made pistol, bullets and copper.

The poachers have been identified as Ulhas Velip (38), Chandrakant Velip (38) – both residents of Padi Canacona – and Gurudas Gaonkar (51) of Shiroda.

Range forest officer Deepak Betkikar said the hunters have been booked under the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, for killing two civet cats.

The poachers were handed over to the police for the illegal possession of the pistol and the bullets.

The hunters were caught red-handed at Chikengal forest area in Shiroda village in the wee hours of Monday when they were returning from the forest with the game.

The forest officials seized a locally-made pistol, copper and bullets from the poachers that had been used to kill the animals.

The poachers from Padi-Canacona are friends of Gaonkar, and had planned to poach games.