IMPHAL: A few days after an army operation against Prepak rebels at Loktak lake and some parts of Keibul Lamjao national park, forest officials in Manipur have found the carcasses of a Kharsa (hog deer) and a Brow Antlered deer, locally known as Sangai.
Keibul, which covers an area of 20 sq km in Manipur's Bishnupur district, is home to the Sangai. Officials who found the skeletal remains of the two animals said they might have been killed by poachers a few months ago.
They ruled out the possibility collateral damage from the army operation. "We don't think the recent operation hurt any animal here. The Sangai or other animals aren't know to visit the spot where the gunbattles took place," an official said.
Last Monday, the ten-day counter-insurgency operation, codenamed Operation Summer Storm' involving troops of 57 Mountain Division and police commandos, was called off. The army claimed to have killed 12 Prepak rebels and destroyed five of their camps in the operation. Forest officials along with environmentalists and wildlife lovers have been combing the park since Tuesday to find out if any animals were killed in the operation.
The remains of the two animals will be studied at the State Zoological Garden to determine the cause of death.
Sangai carcass found in Keibul
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