Telangana Beat Officer Dies Chasing Poachers Using Electric Snares

Telangana forest department officials have highlighted the dangerous shift in wildlife poaching methods along forest fringes following the death of a forest beat officer who died while chasing poachers.

According to an assessment by the forest department, poachers have been increasingly using illegal electric snares, crude traps, and coordinated hunting methods. Power lines passing near agricultural fields and forest boundaries have emerged as a major tool for illegal hunting in recent incidents.

District Forest Officer Siddharth Vikram Singh stated that illegal electrical lines located in and around forest areas have made hunting far easier and cheaper compared to traditional traps and snares.

Officials explained that poachers typically operate in the early morning hours between 4 a.m. and 5 a.m., taking advantage of times when the movement of forest staff is limited. They select locations close to streams, nalas, and water bodies frequented by wildlife, particularly areas situated near electricity lines.

To construct the illegal traps, poachers drive pegs into the ground and attach metal or clutch wires concealed along animal pathways. When animals move through the area and brush against the live wire connected to power lines, they are electrocuted.