The young orangutans were found earlier this September in Odisha's Balasore district. Photos Courtesy: PTI

Orangutans rescuedFive orangutans were found near Badapali village under Bhograi Block of Balasore Division in Odisha on September 8 morning, prompting the Forest Department to launch an investigation into how the animals reached the area, especially because they are native to Indonesia.The officials found that all five were young and were not moving around much, though they were alert and active. The animals were initially provided food at the spot.

Under supervisionThe DFO said the animals' young age and limited mobility suggested that they could not have travelled a long distance on their own. He also said that surviving overnight in the area would have been difficult due to the presence of animals such as jackals, foxes, dogs and langurs.The five orangutans, two females and three males, are approximately one year old. Forest officials, veterinarians and biologists examined the animals, while the department also coordinated with scientists from Nandankanan and the Wildlife Trust of India (WTI)

Emotions The orangutans have been displaying a range of emotions, from momentary mood swings, playful actions to anxiously clinging to each other. On September 10, they were taken out of their quarantine cell for a sunbath to keep them "stress free", a senior official of the Nandankanan Zoological Park in Bhubaneswar said.The orangutans, aged about one year, have been expressing emotions like human children, the official said. "Sometimes they appear to be relaxed, and in the next moment, they cling to each other, likely due to feelings of anxiety for being separated from their mothers," he said.They have also been playing with teddy bear soft toys in the quarantine unit of the zoo, the official said.

Investigation Odisha Police's STF and the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB) intensified their probe into the mystery surrounding the rescue of the orangutans and launched a search for a black SUV reportedly seen in the area.Investigators suspect an international wildlife trafficking network could be behind the presence of the animals in the state, officials said.Grabbing state-wide attention, Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Thursday ordered a probe into the circumstances under which the orangutans were brought to the state, saying Odisha will not be allowed to become a transit route for illegal wildlife trafficking.

PermissionThe Odisha government is awaiting permission from the Central Zoo Authority (CZA) to keep five rescued Orangutan cubs at Nandankanan Zoological Park in Bhubaneswar. State Forest and Environment Minister Ganesh Ram Singhkhuntia on Friday said the state government had two days ago written a letter to the CZA seeking permission to keep the five cubs. CZA is yet to respond to the state government's request. Interestingly, the Nandankanan Zoo already has a special enclosure for Orangutans, but it remained empty following the death of a 41-year-old female Orangutan in 2019. It was brought from a zoo in Pune in 2003.