Five critically endangered baby orangutans rescued from Odisha’s Balasore district on September 8, 2026, are undergoing health assessments and DNA testing at Nandankanan Zoological Park. Authorities suspect international wildlife trafficking as Indonesia requests repatriation if origin checks confirm the Southeast Asian primates were smuggled.
Health Assessments Reveal Anaemia and Fever Among Rescued Primates
The five juvenile orangutans—three females and two males aged between six and eight months—are currently under a 30-day quarantine at Nandankanan Zoological Park in Khordha district. Medical examinations conducted by a technical committee revealed severe anaemia in one infant and mild anaemia in two others, according to zoo deputy director Pradip Mirase.
The health checks included X-rays of the chest, skull, and abdomen, alongside blood, serum, and nasopharyngeal swab collections. Officials noted that one of the young primates developed a high temperature and a fever on Sunday, prompting a second round of examinations within 24 hours. Another infant was diagnosed with a worm infection following stool sample analysis and received targeted medication.
Zoo director Sanath Kumar N told reporters that the overall health condition of the animals appeared stable following supportive care and supplements. Body temperatures for all five primates hovered between 98 and 99 degrees Fahrenheit under a strict dietary schedule featuring milk every two hours alongside apple and banana fluids and boiled potatoes.
Joint Investigation Focuses on International Smuggling Networks
The discovery of the non-native primates in the Ranakantha Reserve Forest within Balasore district on September 8 triggered a joint multi-agency probe involving the Odisha Police Special Task Force, the Forest Department, and the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau. Investigators intensified their search after CCTV footage captured the movement of a black SUV near the drop-off location on September 7.
Acting on the surveillance evidence, the Special Task Force detained three individuals at a hotel in Digha, West Bengal, in coordination with local law enforcement. Director General of Police Vinaytosh Mishra indicated that visible progress in unravelling the trafficking ring was anticipated within seven to eight days, though police withheld specific investigative details to protect the active case.
Biswajit Mohanty, secretary of the Wildlife Society of Orissa, stated that preliminary investigations and physical assessments strongly indicate that these critically endangered primates are victims of international wildlife trafficking, brought illegally into India to feed the expanding underground trade in exotic pets
.
Indonesia Requests Repatriation as DNA Testing Plans Advance
Because orangutans are native exclusively to the rainforests of Borneo and Sumatra in Indonesia and Malaysia, establishing the precise geographic origin of the five infants remains critical to the legal proceedings. Zoo authorities and the Centre for Wildlife Health are coordinating logistics for genetic analysis.
An appropriate laboratory needs to have the standard DNA sample profile of orangutans for comparison.
Nandankanan Zoological Park official
Aditya Acharya, head of the Centre for Wildlife Health at Odisha University of Agriculture and Technology, emphasized that the priority is the well-being of the babies
, adding that regarding DNA tests, zoo authorities will take the call on where and when to send the samples
. Blood sample collection is scheduled to proceed ten days after the animals achieve full recovery, following guidance from the Central Zoo Authority.
Diplomatic channels are already active regarding the animals’ long-term future. Indonesia’s Ministry of Forestry communicated with the Indian CITES Management Authority on September 10, offering official assistance to facilitate repatriation once testing confirms their home country.
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