Come New Year and the bird poachers are all set to earn a fast buck out of selling migratory birds. The meat of the birds remains in high demand among the tourists, which is provided by the poachers, who trap the birds slyly in and around Bhitarkanika National Park. The poachers trap the birds by spreading nets on the paddy fields near Bhitarakanika. Taking advantage of the weak vigilantism in the national park, the poachers call it a day here. Everyday, hundreds of birds are killed and sent off to luxurious hotels to be served on the dining table of the foreign tourists. The birds are being trapped both upstream and down stream in the park areas, said forest official sources. According to reliable sources, the poachers shoot the birds down either in the early morning or at night fall. In order to trap the feathered species, the poachers also spread net with fodder laced with drugs. Later, they kill the migratory birds and sell it to the hotels and bungalows of nearby districts or to the markets of Paradip, Mahakalpada, Rajanagar, Rajakanika and other nearby places, informed a bird poacher of Gupti area on condition of anonymity. According to the poacher, he and his fellow friends have evolved an easy way to catch the birds. They are going to the river inlets, creeks and nullahs of Bhitarkanika in order to catch fish. They spread fishing nets in the area slyly at night in the sanctuary which serves the dual purpose of catching both birds and fishes. As there is no firing, the people don't come to know about the bird catch, he disclosed. According to another poacher of Batighar, the price of each endangered migratory birds in the black market varies from `200 to `300. He added that he captures the birds in the dense forest of Bhitarkanika and sends to the hotels in Cuttack, Bhubaneswar, Paradip and Bhadrak. Next >