Page 100 - SMUGGLING IN INDIA REPORT FOR 2020-2021

54 2020-2021 SMUGGLING IN INDIA REPORT
In yet another seizure effected in January 2021, the DRI Aizawl Regional Unit working with the
Mizoram Forest officials and Police intercepted a vehicle at Vairangte check gate at the Mizoram-Assam border. On checking the said vehicle one exotic animal (Red Reared Guenon Monkey of West African Origin) and thirty exotic birds of different species were found which had been smuggled across the India-Myanmar border.
Conclusions
Technology is assisting the Customs to enforce measures against wildlife crimes at the borders, however, a major challenge in normal times is the sheer volume of international traffic. The pandemic though had reduced the number of flights and passengers, and also affected supply chains, but bought in its own peculiar challenges and difficulties.
Another challenge facing Customs officials is the ever-changing methods that criminals use to smuggle wildlife products. Organized and well-connected criminal gangs blend illegal consignments with the huge volume of legitimate trade. New means of concealment are invented all the time, including ways to camouflage illegal products. For instance, rhino horn or ivory may be cut and painted to make it more difficult to detect; or a red sanders log painted to look like a steel tube. Other methods include blending non-protected species with protected ones or using fraudulent documents.
There are complex illicit trafficking structures that facilitate the killing, transport and sale of prized species, and smuggling of wildlife species given its very nature remains an activity that is planned and executed surreptiously behind dark and heavy curtains. The involvement of well-connected international