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1Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches2Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems3Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteReports published in August 2023 described hunters around Murlen National Park in Mizoram killing small wild cats and selling parts across the border into Myanmar. They named Asiatic golden cats, marbled cats and leopard cats. The accounts document alleged incidents, not a measured surge: they provide neither a quantified trade trend nor an estimate of the cats’ populations.
What the reports say happened
Murlen National Park, in Champhai district near the Mizoram–Myanmar border, is the focus of the reported cases. Researchers said they learned of an Asiatic golden cat killed in November 2022 and another killed in August 2022; the latter was reportedly sold to a buyer in Myanmar. A hunter also reportedly told researchers that a marbled cat and a leopard cat were killed in Murlen in early 2019 and their parts sent to Myanmar. These are accounts relayed by researchers and news coverage, not independently documented seizures or forensic findings. Scroll, 10 August 2023; Mongabay-India, 3 August 2023.
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Which cats and parts were named?
The reports discuss the Asiatic golden cat (Catopuma temminckii), marbled cat (Pardofelis marmorata) and leopard cat (Prionailurus bengalensis). They name pelts, skulls, bones, claws and teeth as parts said to be traded. Researchers described possible ornamental or medicinal demand and possible substitution for parts of larger cats, but the reporting does not present a market survey to establish how common those uses or transactions are.
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Does the evidence show a surge?
“Surge” is the characterization used in the 2023 Scroll headline, but the published accounts do not establish a quantified increase. The cases cited span early 2019 and 2022; there is no time series, count of animals traded over successive years, or population estimate from which to calculate a trend.
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The coverage also includes a counterpoint from an unnamed Wildlife Crime Control Bureau official, who said small-cat trade was rare and that the bureau had found no small-cat hunting case in the preceding five years. That is an attributed statement made in 2023, not a comprehensive prevalence estimate or a current assessment. Taken together, the sources support concern about reported incidents, not a conclusion about the overall scale or direction of trade.
Why the border landscape matters—and what remains uncertain
The reporting identifies stretches of the border without people stationed there and thick forest cover along the Tiau River as conditions that may make access and trade easier. These are proposed contributing factors, not proof that geography alone caused the reported killings or sales.
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- EDIBLE WILD PLANTS: EAST & CEN
Researchers and the reports say the status and viability of these small cats in India remain unclear. Their elusiveness makes sightings uncommon, according to Ivy Farheen Hussain, project officer at Aaranyak, who also said habitat changes may affect them. The material available in the 2023 coverage does not establish abundance, population decline or the effect of the alleged trade on population numbers.
Protection and community responses
Legal context
The 2023 reporting says Asiatic golden cats and marbled cats receive Schedule I protection under India’s Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972. A September 2023 notice from the Chakma Autonomous District Council says sale of wild animals, their parts and derivatives is banned within the Chakma Forest Division, citing that Act and the Indian Forest Act, 1927. The notice is geographically specific; it is not, by itself, a complete account of the law across Mizoram or Myanmar. It should not be treated as current legal advice without checking the applicable law and its current status. Chakma Autonomous District Council notice, 8 September 2023.
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Awareness and livelihoods
The reports describe market-awareness hoardings, engagement with residents and work with the Young Mizo Association. They also relay examples from Amit Kumar Bal: one hunter had reportedly sold his gun and wanted to farm, while some residents had opened homestays and worked as tourist guides. The reports present community participation and livelihood development as possible approaches; they do not evaluate whether these activities have reduced hunting or trade over time. Bal’s statement that no small cats had been killed “this year” referred to 2023, when he spoke to Scroll, and does not describe current conditions.
For broader policy context, India’s Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change annual report for 2024–25 mentions conservation strategies for selected small wild cats, including clouded leopard conservation in Northeast India. It does not establish a specific intervention in Murlen addressing the incidents reported in 2023, nor does it show that the alleged trade has been measured or resolved. Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Annual Report 2024–25.
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How to read the reporting
- Reported allegation: A hunter’s account or researchers’ report of an incident is evidence that the account was made; it is not the same as a verified seizure or forensic confirmation.
- Incident versus trend: Cases reported for particular years do not show how trade changed over time without comparable counts across years.
- Local observation versus population estimate: Rare sightings and concerns about habitat sensitivity do not determine how many cats remain or whether their numbers are falling.
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