After a high drama on the seas, the forest department personnel had seized 55 kgs of sea cucumber, an endangered species, protected under Schedule I of the Wildlife Protection Act, even as three persons who were in possession of the banned species, jumped into the sea and escaped.
Forest Range Officer S. Ganeshalingam said a forest squad, led by Forester Mathiazhagan was on routine patrolling on Mandapam north seashore on Sunday morning when they found a country boat with three onboard, moving in a suspicious manner.
As they tried to return into the sea after sighting the squad, watcher Thangasamy, who was part of the squad, jumped into the sea and chased them by swimming when the smugglers jumped into the sea and escaped. Forest guards Raja and Vadamalayan and watcher Jayakumar assisted him in the operation, he said.
The squad seized the country boat and sea cucumber packed in 21 polythene bags, Mathiazhagan said. Enquiries revealed that those escaped were not fishermen but engaged by a local smuggler to catch the banned species for smuggling abroad after processing them, he said.
The squad presented the seized sea cucumber before the Rameswaram Magistrate court on Monday and destroyed them as per court orders. Acting on the orders of Deepak S Bilgi, Wildlife Warden of the Gulf of Mannar Marine National Park, they formed three groups, each headed by a Forester, and stepped up patrolling in the seashore areas in Mandapam range as the new fishing season has begun and they noticed increased instances of catching sea cucumber.
Two days ago, the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau and the Marine police of the Coastal Security Group (CSG), in a joint operation, seized 65 kg of sea cucumber and arrested one person, also at Mandapam north seashore.
