Smuggler traveling from Thailand stopped with lizards, tarantulas, possums, authorities in India say
How did your country report this? Share your view in the comments.
Diverging Reports Breakdown
Malaysia allocates RM3bil for Sungai Golok project
Malaysia has allocated nearly RM3 billion for the Golok river mouth improvement project, says deputy prime minister Fadillah Yusof. This is a strategic cross-border initiative with Thailand aimed at mitigating flood risks, safeguarding local communities and enhancing national security. The total funding for the project would include building a security wall under the National Security Council.
PETALING JAYA : Malaysia has allocated nearly RM3 billion for the Golok river mouth improvement project, says deputy prime minister Fadillah Yusof.
Bernama reported that this is a strategic cross-border initiative with Thailand aimed at mitigating flood risks, safeguarding local communities and enhancing national security.
Fadillah said the total funding for the project would include building a security wall under the National Security Council.
“We have informed the Thai government that Malaysia has approved a location for dredging works, while simultaneously undertaking improvements to Sungai Golok, including the construction of a river wall.
“This is not merely a flood mitigation initiative but also a security measure,” he said in Bangkok at the end of his four-day working visit to Thailand.
He said parts of the project were awaiting final approval from the Thai authorities. The estimated timeline for completion is three years from the commencement date.
On another issue, Fadillah said Tenaga Nasional Bhd and the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand had completed feasibility studies on a plan to upgrade their existing power interconnection facilities between the two nations.
He said both countries had acknowledged that the interconnection, commissioned in the early 2000s, was ageing and in need of an upgrade.
He said this interconnection upgrade will secure cross-border electricity exchanges and lay the groundwork for future multilateral electricity trade under the Asean Power Grid initiative.
Earthquake news | Highlights: 14 temblors hit Myanmar after 7.7 magnitude quake
A powerful 7.7 magnitude earthquake and multiple aftershocks struck Myanmar on Friday. According to Myanmar’s ruling junta chief, at least 144 people were killed and over 700 people were injured in the destruction caused by the earthquake. Tremors were also felt throughout northern Thailand and down to Bangkok, where residents fled to the streets as buildings shook. Mild tremors were felt in West Bengal’s Kolkata and Manipur’s Imphal as well after the powerful earthquake struck Myanmar.
Earthquake news | Highlights: A powerful 7.7 magnitude earthquake and multiple aftershocks struck Myanmar on Friday, causing roads to buckle, buildings coming down and sending tremors as far as China, Thailand and parts of India as well. According to Myanmar’s ruling junta chief, at least 144 people were killed and over 700 people were injured in the destruction caused by the earthquake, however, the toll was expected to go higher….Read More
Across bordering Thailand, ten people were confirmed dead, including many in the collapse of a skyscraper in near Bangkok’s popular Chatuchak market, while 70 more were missing and believed trapped in the twisted metal and rubble of the under-construction building.
Myanmar earthquake | Key points
– The 7.7 magnitude Myanmar earthquake’s epicenter was located in Mandalay, at a depth of 10 kilometers, around 12:50 pm local time (0620 GMT), according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS). Multiple aftershocks followed, one of them measuring a strong 6.4 magnitude.
– Tremors were also felt throughout northern Thailand and down to Bangkok, where residents fled to the streets as buildings shook. Visuals shared on social media showed a building collapse in Bangkok’s Chatuchak district. Due to the tremors, some metro and light rail services were suspended in Thailand’s Bangkok. Jolts of the Myanmar earthquake were also felt in Vietnam.
– Tremors were also felt in China’s southwest Yunnan province, with Beijing’s quake agency reporting the jolt as a 7.9 magnitude earthquake.
– Earthquakes are relatively common in Myanmar, where between 1930 and 1956, six strong quakes of 7.0 magnitude or higher struck near the Sagaing Fault, which runs north to south through the center of the country, according to the USGS.
– Mild tremors were felt in West Bengal’s Kolkata and Manipur’s Imphal as well after the powerful 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck Myanmar. According to official sources cited by news agency PTI, there have been no reports of damage to property or loss of life in the city due to the tremor.
Trump tariffs announcement highlights: US President says ‘big business not worried’
US President Donald Trump announced reciprocal tariffs against other countries on Wednesday during an event at the Rose Garden of the White House. The tariffs ranged from 10 per cent to 49 per cent. Trump levied a 26 per cent tariff on India, 34 per cent on China, 46% on Vietnam, 10% on the UK, 49% on Cambodia and 25% on South Korea.
The Trump administration claimed that the move is aimed at freeing America from its dependence on foreign goods and deterring countries from levying unfair duties on them.
Trump, who has dubbed the announcement on April 2 as ‘Liberation Day’, said, “Taxpayers have been ripped off for more than 50 years. But it is not going to happen anymore.”
Notably, the chart Donald Trump displayed at White House while announcing retaliatory tariffs indicated that India charged 52 per cent tariffs, including currency manipulation and trade barriers, and America would now charge India a discounted reciprocal tariff of 26 per cent. But according to the White House documents, there will be a 27 per cent duty on India.
Last month, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the Trump administration focused on the 15 percent of the countries that account for the largest trading volumes with the US and the highest tariffs simultaneously, referring to them as the “Dirty 15.”
He said these nations often have a system governing domestic content or food safety that conspires to keep American products out of their markets. These countries include, Mexico, Canada, Japan, India, Germany, South Korea, The UK, Ireland, France, etc.
More on Trump tariffs:
Indian smuggler stopped with possums, lizards, tarantulas
Customs officers said the passenger had “exhibited signs of nervousness” The passenger was also carrying two tarantula spiders and tortoises. Wildlife seized included iguanas, as well as a kinkajou or honey bear. More than 7,000 animals have been seized along the Thailand-India air route in the last 3.5 years.
Customs officers said the passenger, who was also carrying two tarantula spiders and tortoises, had “exhibited signs of nervousness” on arrival at India’s financial capital Mumbai.
The seizure comes after a passenger was stopped smuggling dozens of venomous vipers, also arriving from Thailand, earlier in June.
Wildlife seized included iguanas, as well as a kinkajou or honey bear a small raccoon-like animal from Mexico’s rainforests as well as six “sugar gliders”, a gliding possum found in Australia.
Photographs released by the customs unit showed the six sugar gliders huddled together in a basket, as well as a box crammed with lizards.
Wildlife trade monitor TRAFFIC, which battles the smuggling of wild animals and plants, on Tuesday warned of a “very troubling” trend in trafficking driven by the exotic pet trade.
More than 7,000 animals, dead and alive, have been seized along the Thailand-India air route in the last 3.5 years, it said.
Customs officers at Mumbai airport are more used to seizing smuggled gold, cash or cannabis but instances of wildlife seizure have seen a gradual rise recently.
Customs officers seized dozens of snakes and several turtles from an Indian national flying from Thailand earlier in June.
Among them were several spider-tailed horned vipers, a venomous species only described by scientists in 2006 and classed as “near-threatened” by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature .
Smuggler traveling from Thailand stopped with lizards, tarantulas, possums, authorities in India say
Customs officers seize nearly 100 creatures including lizards, sunbirds and tree-climbing possums. The passenger was also carrying two tarantula spiders and tortoises. The wildlife in the latest seizure included iguanas, as well as a kinkajou or honey bear. More than 7,000 animals, dead and alive, have been seized along the Thailand-India air route in the last 3-and-a-half years, TRAFFIC says. The clamor for exotic pets is driving the trade, a wildlife trade monitor says. and more than 80% of intercepted animals come from India, it adds. and is warning of a “very troubling” trend in trafficking of wild animals and plants.
Customs officers said the passenger, who was also carrying two tarantula spiders and tortoises, had “exhibited signs of nervousness” on arrival at India’s financial capital Mumbai.
The seizure comes after a passenger was stopped smuggling dozens of venomous vipers, also arriving from Thailand, earlier in June. They included 44 Indonesian pit vipers and were “concealed in checked-in baggage,” Mumbai Customs said in a statement.
The wildlife in the latest seizure included iguanas, as well as a kinkajou or honey bear — a small raccoon-like animal from Mexico’s rainforests — along with six “sugar gliders,” a gliding possum found in Australia.
Photographs released by the customs unit showed the six sugar gliders huddled together in a basket, as well as a box crammed with lizards.
Wildlife that customs officials in Mumbai, India said on June 10, 2025 they caught an airline passenger from Thailand trying to smuggle into the country. Among them: six sugar gliders huddled together in a basket, as well as a box crammed with lizards. Mumbia (India ) Customs, on X
“In a significant operation, customs officers … intercepted an Indian national … leading to the seizure of multiple live and deceased wildlife species, some of which are protected under wildlife protection laws,” the Ministry of Finance said in a statement late Monday.
Disturbing smuggling trend
Wildlife trade monitor TRAFFIC, which battles the smuggling of wild animals and plants, on Tuesday warned of a “very troubling” trend in trafficking driven by the exotic pet trade.
More than 7,000 animals, dead and alive, have been seized along the Thailand-India air route in the last 3-and-a-half years, it said.
Customs officers at Mumbai airport are more used to seizing smuggled gold, cash or cannabis — but instances of wildlife seizure have seen a gradual rise recently.
Customs officers seized dozens of snakes and several turtles from an Indian national flying from Thailand earlier in June.
Among them were several spider-tailed horned vipers, a venomous species only described by scientists in 2006 and classified as “near-threatened” by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature.
TRAFFIC said its analysis showed that while most cases involve animals smuggled out of Thailand, more than 80% of interceptions happened in India.
“The almost-weekly discoveries and diversity of wildlife en route to India is very troubling,” said TRAFFIC’s Southeast Asia director Kanitha Krishnasamy.
Many of those captured were alive, which “shows that the clamor for exotic pets is driving the trade,” she added.
In February, customs officials at Mumbai airport also stopped a smuggler with five Siamang gibbons, a small ape native to the forests of Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand.
Those small creatures, listed as endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, were “ingeniously concealed” in a plastic crate placed inside the passenger’s trolley bag, customs officers said.
In November, authorities found a passenger carrying a wriggling live cargo of 12 turtles.