The wild boar was later released into the mangrove forest area. (Representative)
Kendrapara:
Forest officials in Odisha’s Kendrapara district on Saturday rescued a wild boar from a man’s house and arrested him on charges of unlawfully confining the wild animal in his house, an official said.
The accused Bhajan Raptan (50), a native of Pitapata village under the Mahakalapada Forest Range, had kept him in a cage and kept him as a pet, the official said.
Raptan, who was booked under various sections of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, was later remanded to judicial custody after a local court rejected his bail application, said Forest Range Officer of Mahakalapada forest range Kartikeswar Khandei.
The offense of keeping the wild animal as a pet is punishable with imprisonment for a term of three to seven years or more and a fine of Rs 10,000 to Rs 25,000, he said.
The offense is also cognizable and non-bailable, the forest officer said.
The wild boar was later released into the mangrove forest area, the ideal habitat for such animals, he added.
The Odisha Forest Department has issued an alert and asked people not to click photos or selfies with wild animals and post them on social media platforms under the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972.
A week ago, forest officials arrested a couple from Jajpur district under the provisions of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, for clicking photographs of wild animals and posting them on social media platforms.
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