Directorate of Revenue Intelligence seizes 13 kg elephant tusks

The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) seized around13 kg of elephant tusk from Assam in a train in New Jalpaiguri railway stationof northern West Bengal and arrested one person, an official said on Friday.According to an estimate, the tusks could fetch around Rs 1.5 crore in the greymarket.

Acting on specific intelligence, the DRI officers intercepted Azeem Ahmed from an AC 2 Tier compartment of Gandhidham-bound 15668 Kamakhya Gandhidham Express at New Jalpaiguri Railway Station on Wednesday. During preliminary interrogation, Ahmed admitted that he had procured the tusks from Fakirgram in Kokrajhar district of Assam and was on his way to deliver the goods at Varanasi for export to some Southeast Asian Country. He also confessed that he had carried similar goods on three previous occasions.

The recovered Elephant Tusks have been seized and Ahmed has been arrested under the provisions of Customs Act.

"From his possession, tusks (Ivory) of a full-grown male Indian (Asian) elephant Elephas Maximas were recovered. The weight of the recovered elephant tusks was 12.909 kg," the official said.