Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government has constituted a five-member technical committee to oversee the welfare and care of five baby orangutans rescued from a casuarina forest in Balasore district earlier this week.
The critically endangered primates, which are not native to India and originate from the rainforests of Southeast Asia (primarily Borneo and Sumatra), are currently housed at the Nandankanan Zoological Park in Bhubaneswar.
The panel, with the director of Nandankanan Biological Park serving as member-convener, will assess issues related to the animals’ welfare and upkeep while providing technical guidance for their proper care. Its members include a veterinary officer from Sri Chamarajendra Zoological Gardens in Mysuru, a representative of the Wildlife Institute of India in Dehradun, and the project coordinator of the Centre for Wildlife Health at Odisha University of Agriculture and Technology (OUAT) in Bhubaneswar. The committee is authorised to consult or co-opt national and international experts and organisations as needed, the PTI reported quoting an official order.
Chief Wildlife Warden and Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife) P K Jha emphasised that the state’s immediate priority is ensuring the best possible care for the five young animals at Nandankanan’s hand-rearing centre. Three caretakers and doctors are engaged round the clock to monitor their health.
Aditya Acharya, head of OUAT’s Wildlife Treatment Centre, noted that the orangutans are gradually becoming familiar with their caretakers and readily accepting food from them. “The caretakers are like new mothers to the baby orangutans,” he told the news agency, adding that their ease in interacting with humans suggests prior contact and care.
According to a caretaker at the quarantine unit, the infants, estimated to be between six months and one year old, comprising three males and two females, are fed milk every two hours, along with apple and banana fluids and boiled potatoes at regular intervals as per an expert-prepared dietary chart. Soft toys, swings, and music therapy have been provided to help keep them stress-free. One has recovered from fever and two from colds; blood sample collection for DNA testing has been postponed by about 10 days.
The five orangutans were spotted by local residents on September 8 morning in a casuarina forest in Bichitrapur area of Bhograi block and rescued by forest officials without the need for tranquilisers, as they were calm and approachable. Their presence stunned authorities, given the absence of any natural wildlife corridor linking their Southeast Asian habitat to Odisha and the roughly 2,700 km distance involved.
Officials suspect they were abandoned as part of a botched international wildlife trafficking operation, potentially after being transported via routes involving West Bengal or maritime channels.
Meanwhile, the Special Task Force (STF) of Odisha Crime Branch and the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB) have intensified their joint investigation into possible international smuggling. A black SUV (reportedly a Mahindra Thar) has emerged as a key lead. Investigators have scrutinised footage from dozens of CCTV cameras along a possible route from Digha in West Bengal to Bichitrapur. Footage shows a similar vehicle near a hotel in Digha around 10:56 pm on September 7 and near Bichitrapur about 39 minutes later at approximately 11:35 pm. Teams are reconstructing the roughly 22 km route, checking for stops, identifying occupants, and examining related activity such as the transfer of boxes. Raids were conducted at the residence of the hotel owner, identified as Jayanta Maiti, in Howrah on Saturday. While Maiti and his son have reportedly been absconding since the incident, the manager and others staff have been questioned. Face masks found in a polythene bag near the forest are also under examination. No definitive link to the orangutans has been confirmed yet, and the probe continues with analysis of mobile tower data and other leads.
Odisha DGP Vinyatosh Mishra has directed investigators to examine all angles.
Indonesian authorities have also indicated willingness to coordinate on establishing the animals’ origin for possible eventual repatriation, though experts note this involves complex genetic analysis, legal, and diplomatic steps. For now, the focus remains on their care at Nandankanan, which previously housed an orangutan until 2019.
