Baby orangutans found in Indian forest spark trafficking inquiry

What the report says

Five baby orangutans were discovered in a forest in Odisha in eastern India, far outside the species’ natural range, prompting a trafficking investigation, according to BBC World News. The animals were found in Balasore district after local people alerted forest officials. They were first given medical care and later moved to Nandankanan Zoological Park in Bhubaneswar, where they are being quarantined and monitored.

BBC reported that Indian authorities are examining whether the young apes were moved into the country by an international smuggling network and then abandoned near a highway. Officials said the forest where they were found is not dense wilderness and sits close to a state road, which has raised questions about how the animals arrived there. Police, forest staff and a special task force are involved, and the state government has also reportedly asked India’s Wildlife Crime Control Bureau to help with the inquiry.

The orangutans are critically endangered and are native only to Indonesia and Malaysia. Conservation experts quoted by BBC said their very young age makes the case especially serious, since infants normally depend on their mothers for years. The report noted that orangutans are still trafficked despite bans on international trade and protections under Indian law, often for the exotic pet trade or private collectors. BBC also said a similar case occurred in India in 2022, when two baby orangutans were found near the Assam-Mizoram border.