Five baby orangutans in an Odisha forest have raised a disturbing question: how did animals native to Southeast Asia reach India?
Forest officials in Odisha have rescued five young orangutans from the Ranakatha Protected Reserve Forest block near Badapai village in Balasore district. The animals, all believed to be between one and two years old, were found in a forest area near Bhograi.
Wildlife officials are investigating how the orangutans reached Odisha and whether they were brought into India as part of an international wildlife trafficking network.
Orangutans are not native to India. They are found naturally in the rainforests of Sumatra and Borneo, mainly in Indonesia and Malaysia. Their presence in a forest along Odisha's coast, more than 100 metres from the sea, has raised questions about how they were transported there.
Prem Kumar Jha, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife), said the location where the animals were found suggests that a sea route may have been used.
He said an international wildlife trafficking network could be involved and that the orangutans may have been moved through two or three locations before reaching Odisha. He also said the adult female orangutans may have been killed by poachers before the young animals were captured.
An Assistant Chief Conservator of Forests in the Wildlife Wing has been asked to investigate the route through which the orangutans reached Odisha.
According to forest officials, one possible route could begin in the forests of Sumatra, where poachers target adult orangutans and capture their young. The animals could then be moved by small boats along the Bangladesh and Odisha coastline.
A wildlife expert from Assam's Cachar district has suggested another possibility. The orangutans may have been transported overland through Bangladesh and Thailand before being brought into India.
The high value of the animals may be one reason they are targeted by traffickers. Officials said a single orangutan could fetch around ₹25 lakh in the illegal market.
Orangutans Moved to Nandankanan for Care
The five rescued animals have been shifted to the campus of Nandankanan Zoological Park in Bhubaneswar. They were subsequently taken to the Udaypur Section Office for quarantine and observation.
Officials said the orangutans will remain under continuous veterinary supervision and receive treatment as required. Their health will be monitored before any decision is taken on their longer-term care and rehabilitation.
Earlier Cases Raise Concern
The Odisha rescue is not the first case involving young orangutans found in India far from their natural habitat.
In November 2024, an orangutan and several reptiles suspected to have been smuggled from Southeast Asia were rescued from a rented flat in Dombivli near Mumbai.
In October 2023, Customs officials in Mumbai rescued a baby orangutan and investigated whether it had been trafficked through Seling village in Mizoram's Aizawl district, near the Myanmar border.
In September 2022, two baby orangutans suspected to have originated in Indonesia were rescued in Assam's Cachar district.
The repeated appearance of young orangutans in India has raised concerns about trafficking routes through the country's eastern land borders and coastline. These cases may also point to links with a wider Southeast Asian wildlife trafficking network.
Critically Endangered Species
Orangutans are classified as critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). International commercial trade in the species is also regulated under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).
Despite these protections, poaching continues in many wild places, driven partly by demand for young orangutans as exotic pets.
Forest officials in Odisha have not yet identified those suspected of bringing the animals into the state or established how they entered India. The Wildlife Wing's investigation is expected to examine possible transit routes, local handlers and links to the wider trafficking chain.
For now, the immediate priority is the health of the five young orangutans. They remain under veterinary observation while officials investigate how they came to be in an Odisha forest.
Forest officials in Odisha have rescued five young orangutans from the Ranakatha Protected Reserve Forest block near Badapai village in Balasore district. The animals, all believed to be between one and two years old, were found in a forest area near Bhograi.
Wildlife officials are investigating how the orangutans reached Odisha and whether they were brought into India as part of an international wildlife trafficking network.
Orangutans are not native to India. They are found naturally in the rainforests of Sumatra and Borneo, mainly in Indonesia and Malaysia. Their presence in a forest along Odisha's coast, more than 100 metres from the sea, has raised questions about how they were transported there.
Prem Kumar Jha, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife), said the location where the animals were found suggests that a sea route may have been used.
He said an international wildlife trafficking network could be involved and that the orangutans may have been moved through two or three locations before reaching Odisha. He also said the adult female orangutans may have been killed by poachers before the young animals were captured.
An Assistant Chief Conservator of Forests in the Wildlife Wing has been asked to investigate the route through which the orangutans reached Odisha.
According to forest officials, one possible route could begin in the forests of Sumatra, where poachers target adult orangutans and capture their young. The animals could then be moved by small boats along the Bangladesh and Odisha coastline.
A wildlife expert from Assam's Cachar district has suggested another possibility. The orangutans may have been transported overland through Bangladesh and Thailand before being brought into India.
The high value of the animals may be one reason they are targeted by traffickers. Officials said a single orangutan could fetch around ₹25 lakh in the illegal market.
Orangutans Moved to Nandankanan for Care
The five rescued animals have been shifted to the campus of Nandankanan Zoological Park in Bhubaneswar. They were subsequently taken to the Udaypur Section Office for quarantine and observation.
Officials said the orangutans will remain under continuous veterinary supervision and receive treatment as required. Their health will be monitored before any decision is taken on their longer-term care and rehabilitation.
Earlier Cases Raise Concern
The Odisha rescue is not the first case involving young orangutans found in India far from their natural habitat.
In November 2024, an orangutan and several reptiles suspected to have been smuggled from Southeast Asia were rescued from a rented flat in Dombivli near Mumbai.
In October 2023, Customs officials in Mumbai rescued a baby orangutan and investigated whether it had been trafficked through Seling village in Mizoram's Aizawl district, near the Myanmar border.
In September 2022, two baby orangutans suspected to have originated in Indonesia were rescued in Assam's Cachar district.
The repeated appearance of young orangutans in India has raised concerns about trafficking routes through the country's eastern land borders and coastline. These cases may also point to links with a wider Southeast Asian wildlife trafficking network.
Critically Endangered Species
Orangutans are classified as critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). International commercial trade in the species is also regulated under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).
Despite these protections, poaching continues in many wild places, driven partly by demand for young orangutans as exotic pets.
Forest officials in Odisha have not yet identified those suspected of bringing the animals into the state or established how they entered India. The Wildlife Wing's investigation is expected to examine possible transit routes, local handlers and links to the wider trafficking chain.
For now, the immediate priority is the health of the five young orangutans. They remain under veterinary observation while officials investigate how they came to be in an Odisha forest.
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