{"id":22066,"date":"2026-09-09T07:47:14","date_gmt":"2026-09-09T07:47:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/?p=22066"},"modified":"2026-09-09T07:47:14","modified_gmt":"2026-09-09T07:47:14","slug":"orangutans-in-odisha-how-did-apes-not-native-to-india-end-up-in-balasore-forest-bhubaneswar-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/?p=22066","title":{"rendered":"Orangutans in Odisha: How did apes not native to India end up in Balasore forest | Bhubaneswar News"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"e9jwa\">\n<div class=\"vdo_embedd\">\n<div class=\"GfdvZ\">\n<section class=\"_bIDB  clearfix id-r-component leadmedia undefined undefined  E9tg9 \" style=\"top:0px\">\n<div class=\"_bIDB\" data-ua-type=\"1\" onclick=\"stpPgtnAndPrvntDefault(event)\">\n<div class=\"ypVvZ\">\n<div class=\"WGttI\"><img src=\"https:\/\/static.toiimg.com\/thumb\/msid-133952536,imgsize-229904,width-400,height-225,resizemode-75\/five-baby-orangutans-were-discovered-in-a-balasore-forest-baffling-wildlife-officials.jpg\" alt=\"Orangutans in Odisha: How did apes not native to India end up in Balasore forest\" title=\"Five baby orangutans were discovered in a Balasore forest, baffling wildlife officials\" decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"high\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Ta7d_ img_cptn\"><span title=\"Five baby orangutans were discovered in a Balasore forest, baffling wildlife officials\">Five baby orangutans were discovered in a Balasore forest, baffling wildlife officials<\/span><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>BHUBANESWAR: They were merrily swinging from branches in a dense casuarina forest, but the five baby orangutans had no business being there.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"1\"\/>Their bizarre appearance in Odisha&#8217;s Balasore forest on Tuesday has left wildlife officials baffled and triggered a probe into suspected international wildlife trafficking.<!-- --> Authorities suspect the critically endangered apes may have been abandoned by traffickers fearing arrest.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"5\"\/>The five orangutans \u2014 two females and three males \u2014 were spotted by locals dangling from tree branches in the Bhogarai forest area, around 40km from the Balasore-Kolkata stretch of NH-16. Since orangutans are neither native to India nor found in the wild in the country, officials suspect they may have reached Odisha through an international trafficking network.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"9\"\/>The animals are suspected to have been abandoned near Badipada in Chandaneswar by traffickers fearing arrest. A special task force (STF) of the crime branch has launched a probe, while a team from the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB) is heading to Balasore.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"11\"\/>IG (STF) Himanshu Kumar Lal said, \u201cWe have sent our personnel to Balasore to start the probe.\u201d<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"13\"\/>Forest minister Ganesh Ram Singhkhuntia said the WCCB would conduct a detailed investigation to identify the animals&#8217; origin and uncover how they reached Odisha.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"16\"\/>Locals who first spotted the unusual animals alerted forest officials, believing that a rare species of monkeys had strayed into the area.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"18\"\/>\u201cWhen our field personnel visited the site, to their surprise, the five were orangutans, including two females and three males. As a crowd started gathering near the forest, we decided to bring a cage and safely secure the animals without using tranquillisers. The orangutans were extremely calm and meek. <!-- -->They could be handled by hand and placed inside the cage without any difficulty,\u201d said Balasore divisional forest officer Prateek Indalkar.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"23\"\/>Indalkar said the animals could have been transported in a vehicle travelling from Kolkata to Balasore.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"25\"\/>\u201cWe suspect they may have come from Malaysia to Kolkata by ship. The WCCB has the expertise to determine the exact species and identify the country of origin,\u201d he added.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"27\"\/>Chief wildlife warden Prem Kumar Jha said orangutans have been trafficked and illegally kept as exotic pets by wealthy individuals in several countries.<\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/timesofindia.indiatimes.com\/city\/bhubaneswar\/5-orangutans-in-odisha-how-did-apes-not-native-to-india-end-up-in-balasore-forest\/articleshow\/133952339.cms\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Five baby orangutans were discovered in a Balasore forest, baffling wildlife officials BHUBANESWAR: They were merrily swinging from branches in a dense casuarina forest, but the five baby orangutans had no business being there.Their bizarre appearance in Odisha&#8217;s Balasore forest on Tuesday has left wildlife officials baffled and triggered a probe into suspected international wildlife 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baby orangutans were discovered in a Balasore forest, baffling wildlife officials BHUBANESWAR: They were merrily swinging from branches in a dense casuarina forest, but the five baby orangutans had no business being there.Their bizarre appearance in Odisha&#8217;s Balasore forest on Tuesday has left wildlife officials baffled and triggered a probe into suspected international wildlife [&hellip;]","magazineBlocksPostCategories":["\u0b26\u0b47\u0b36 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