Officials of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) recovered two elephant tusks weighing about 3.7 kg near Guwahati on 5 November after five suspects abandoned the bag and fled, the agency said.
Acting on intelligence about the movement of tusks, DRI officers spotted the five suspects on two two-wheelers near the Sonapur toll gate, about 27 km from Guwahati, at around 5:40 pm. The suspects tried to flee, brandishing a khukri and a dao at the pursuing officers, and escaped into a nearby village, leaving the bag behind.
What was found
The bag held two tusks, 29 and 30 inches long, with a combined weight of about 3.7 kg. They were seized under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, and handed to the Assam Forest Department for further investigation.
Elephant tusks are protected under Schedule I of the Act and Appendix I of CITES, and trade in them is prohibited, the DRI noted. No arrests are mentioned in the release.
Source: official release by the Ministry of Finance, issued through the Press Information Bureau, Government of India (10 NOV 2026 3:14PM by PIB Delhi). Read the full official text: DRI foils wildlife trafficking bid in Assam; recovers two elephant tusks weighing 3.7 kg amid dangerous pursuit by armed suspects.
How we verified this
VerifiedEvery fact, figure and quotation is taken from the official PIB release (Release ID 2334616) issued by the Ministry of Finance on 10 NOV 2026 3:14PM by PIB Delhi; checked against the source on publication. Story written by BDT from that release; no outside facts added.
Sources
- 1.DRI foils wildlife trafficking bid in Assam; recovers two elephant tusks weighing 3.7 kg amid dangerous pursuit by armed suspects — Press Information Bureau, Government of India
