6 arrested for smuggling 1 litre snake venom worth ₹1 cr in Odisha

Bhubaneswar: Officials of the Bhubaneswar forest department on Saturday busted a snake venom smuggling racket and arrested six persons including a woman in this connection.

According to District Forest Officer (DFO) Ashok Mishra, one litre of snake venom has been seized from the accused.

"We have seized one litre of snake venom and five vials of five millilitres each, procured from Bargarh. Three persons, including a woman from Balasore, had made a deal for Rs 10 lakhs. It is worth over Rs 1 crore on the international market," he said.

Mishra further informed that it takes about 200 cobras to collect one litre of venom.

"Six persons who were involved in the case have been arrested under section Section 9, 39, 44, 49 and 51 of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 and they will be forwarded to the court tomorrow," he added.