Mettupalayam: The officials of the Forest Department recovered the carcass of a one-and-a-half year old spotted deer from a patta land near Sirumugai range of reserve forest near Mettupalayam on Tuesday.

For consumption

According to sources, the officials received information that the villagers were attempting to remove the carcass of a deer in a gorge, for consumption. The Conservator of Forests, Rakesh Chandra Purwar, and the District Forest Officer, Seva Singh, deputed a team to probe into the incident.

The team led by Forest Veterinarian, N.S. Manoharan, visited the scene and held inquiries. The officials seized the meat, and destroyed it.

Legal provisions to prosecute two villagers for trying to consume meat were explored under the provisions of the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972.

Officials suspect that a herd of deer could have strayed into farmlands in search of food and water. When chased by country dogs, this male deer could have gone astray. While crossing a barbed wire fence, the deer could have fallen into the gorge, and the dogs could have pounced on it.

Hunting for pigs

Another theory about this was that miscreants could have opened fire while hunting for pigs and rabbit.

The incident gained significance in the wake of two villagers recently sustaining injuries in an exchange of fire suspected to be between gangs that looted scrap iron from the defunct SIV factory in the area.

Precaution against looting

The Deputy-Inspector General of Police, Coimbatore Range, M.N. Manjunatha, and the Superintendent of Police, Coimbatore Rural District, P.C. Thenmozhi, camped in the area for a couple of days, besides deploying armed police personnel as precaution against looting by armed gangs as well as poaching along the banks of the Bhavani river.

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