Arunachal Pradesh: Forest Officer receives praise for dealing with heavily armed 'hunters'

Social media is impressed with the video of a Range Forest Officer in Arunachal Pradesh, who is seen trying to convince a group of heavily-armed people believed to be hunters against targeting wildlife for pleasure at Pasighat in East Siang district. 

The video shared by IFS officer Parveen Kaswan on Twitter shows an unarmed Pasighat RFO Jumgo Geiyi trying to reason with heavily-armed gunmen against resorting to the mindless killing of animals inside the forest.

He is heard saying, "Don't help us if you do not want to, but do not put yourself in trouble. Nobody will come to protect you from the law. I would have understood if you entered the forest with your traditional weapons and said that you were protecting your tradition. But using guns was never in your tradition." 

He further said, "You look like Taliban, armed with guns. You look like you are going to fight a war. An animal which cannot fend for itself. What do you get by by killing it? Even animals have their younglings. If someone kills your children or your parents, how would you feel? It's the same with animals. Some of you don't even kill animals to eat but rather for enjoyment. It's not as if you are not getting anything to eat. The markets are well-stocked. What is the need to break the law?"

The video is being widely shared by social media users, most of whom complimented the officer for standing up to armed gunmen.
 "Lot of leadership lessons in this video - superbly handled," said one user.

"So much gratitude for the effort put in by Forest personnel ," said another user.

A user said, "A risk-filled and arduous task. Field forces through the country face many challenges of various kinds unknown to most outside, protecting our wilds is like protecting our borders. They deserve much respect and appreciation, also sensitivity to their needs!"