Shillong: In a significant display of community vigilance, villagers in Meghalaya’s South Garo Hills district successfully intercepted a Shillong-registered vehicle on June 11, thwarting an attempt to smuggle cattle into Bangladesh. The drama unfolded late at night in Jadi town, close to Nangalbibra, as alert residents took matters into their own hands.
The vehicle, identified as a Maruti EECO van with registration number ML05 T 3893, was found to be crammed with six adult cows. The van was reportedly travelling on an isolated highway towards the international border when it was stopped by the villagers around 3 AM.
The cattle, believed to have been picked up from Dudhnoi, were being transported through a circuitous route encompassing Damra, Rongjeng, Nangalbibra, and Jadi, with the ultimate destination being the Baghmara-Rongara side of the border.
This incident once again highlights the crucial role played by local communities in curbing smuggling activities, even in the presence of numerous police stations and checkpoints along the highway stretch from Rongjeng to Baghmara and Rongara.
“This is just the tip of the iceberg. Smuggling of cattle is taking place late in the night, almost every week. Just recently, two Mahindra pick-up vehicles with cattle passed through our region in the dead of night. We tried to stop them but they sped away,” stated Greneth Sangma, a former student leader and social activist from the area, underscoring the pervasive nature of the problem.
South Garo Hills has unfortunately garnered a reputation for various alleged smuggling rackets, including the illicit trade of thousands of bags of sugar, the illegal import of Burmese arecanut, and even vehicle and motorcycle theft.
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