Aizawl, Apr 3 (PTI) Thirty-one different species of exotic animals suspected to be smuggled from a neighbouring country were rescued by Forest department officials and Assam Rifles personnel during a joint operation in Mizoram's Champhai district near the Myanmar border, an official said on Thursday.

Six people, including a Myanmar national, were arrested from Zokhawthar village in the district on Wednesday for trafficking exotic animals worth Rs 1.3 crore in the international market, he said.

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The rescued animals included 27 African spurred tortoises, 3 Patagonian maras and an Albino Burmese python, he said.

The six accused were sent to a district jail in Champhai as per the district judicial magistrate's order, the official said.

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Earlier on March 26, officials of the Khawzawl district wildlife division arrested a poacher for allegedly shooting a barking deer and a rufous throated partridge in the forest.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)