GOLAKGANJ, Nov 28 � A section of dhaba owners and some local villagers residing alongside Alomganj, Panbari Forest, in Dhubri district are doing brisk business in deer meat. One kilogram of venison is readily available at anything between Rs 150 to 200 in the area, and a variety of dishes will be laid out for gourmets seeking to feast on exotic delicacies at a few dhabas along the National Highway-31, close to the Panbari Forest. Smoked venison laid out on plantain leaves with mint sauce and onions or boiled venison in green chilli soup, splashed with a pint of rum, are easily available on order. But to taste such dishes, the customer has to be smart enough to coax the dhaba owner into serving him deer meat. If there is any suspicion in the dhaba owner�s mind, the customer will not be served.
�I am sure the deer population in the Kazigaon, Mahamaya and Tipkai areas will decline considerably, going by the current trend. A number of deer have been killed and their meat sold at remote villages. Venison is in great demand in these areas,� Mrinmoy Kumar Deb Adhikary, social worker and local leader of the area, said. �It is not physically possible to stop the killings at the foothills,� a Forest ranger said. And the dhaba owners selling cooked venison � a dish much fancied by truck drivers � have so far succeeded in evading the police and Forest authorities. �Unless we catch them red-handed, it is difficult to raid each and every roadside dhaba to find out if venison is being sold,� the Forest ranger added.