Forest officials seek grant from court to arrest illegal venom-trading teachers

Forest officers pleaded before the Jalpaiguri District Court seeking permission to arrest two school teachers who were allegedly involved in the racket of selling snake venom.

A forest officer said that on October 14, officers from Belakobra Range in Baikunthapur had conducted a raid in a hotel in Siliguri and arrested four members of the venom smuggling racket.

The four were taken in remand by the forest officers. During interrogation they revealed names of 26 people including the two teachers who were directly or indirectly involved in the racket.

Based on the information provided by the arrested youth, the cops initiated an investigation and came to know that the teachers — Asim Adhikari and Sanjib Sarkar — used to visit places like Alimuddin Street and different parts of Salt Lake to supply venom. Both are teachers of two different schools in South Dinajpur. They were also in contact with members of the racket in Bangladesh.

After becoming sure about the involvement of the teachers, the forest officers have pleaded before the court for permission to arrest them. The investigating officers believe that interrogation of the duo would help them to get information about many other members of the racket.

Moreover, they can help the officers in taking them to the receivers of venom in Kolkata and its adjoining areas. In most cases they sell snake venoms to the people who prepare medicines. They buy venom from members of the racket as they provide it quite easily at a much cheaper rate. The forest officers, however, suspect that they also used to sell it to some youth who take it as a drug. They usually sell venom to such youth at a very high rate.