by Bhupen Goswami

Guwahati : In a major crackdown on smuggling of sandalwood across Manipur, the Assam Rifles, over a period of two days (June 16-18), intercepted two trucks loaded with red sandalwood near the Indo-Myanmar Border and apprehended seven Burmese nationals and four individuals from Churachandpur. These individuals were transporting logs of Red Sandalwood, weighing over 6871 Kgs and worth over Rs. 4.8 crore in the international market. “Assam Rifles has been at the forefront in tackling the menace of insurgency and smuggling of Red Sandalwood is one of the many means adopted by the insurgent groups to finance their nefarious activities,” said PRO Defence (Kohima), Col C Konwer. Earlier in the month of February, approximately 6,138 kg of Red Sandalwood was also recovered by Assam Rifles from the border areas. Such operations are also a shot in the arm for the overall safety and security of the state and the nation, said Konwer adding that the subject consignment along with the recovered vehicles and individuals were handed over to the forest department for further investigation.