The Odisha government on Thursday said it has not received any official communication about any proposed visit of Indonesian wildlife experts or repatriation of the five baby orangutans rescued from a forest in Balasore district in September.
The Indian Embassy in Jakarta on Monday said that efforts were underway to facilitate the early repatriation of the rescued primates lodged at the Nandankanan Zoological Park in Bhubaneswar, subject to the confirmation of the place of their origin.
"The Embassy of India in Jakarta is also facilitating a visit by Indonesian wildlife experts from the Ministry of Forestry of Indonesia to India in November 2026," it said in the press release.
While contacted, Odisha's Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife) P K Jha said, "No official communication (about the repatriation of the five baby orangutans) has been received by us so far."
The state government also does not have any information about the possible visit of wildlife experts from the Ministry of Forestry of Indonesia to India in November, he said.
Nandankanan Zoological Park's Deputy Director Pradeep Mirase said, "The blood samples of the rescued baby orangutans have been collected, but their DNA report is not available so far. Therefore, their place of origin is not clear yet."
"How can we say that they belong to Indonesia? We need to confirm their place of origin first before making any repatriation plan. The animals are doing very well in Nannadankanan and growing well due to the care of their keepers."
The orangutans were rescued on September 8, triggering a probe into possible trafficking of these animals. These primates are generally found in the wild in Borneo and Sumatra.
In September, Odisha Forest and Environment Minister Ganesh Ram Singhkhuntia had told reporters that the state government has written to the Central Zoo Authorities to allow the state to keep the rescued baby orangutans.
"The climate of Odisha suits orangutans. Special care is being taken, and 24-hour monitoring is being done. The weight of the rescued orangutans has also increased," he had said.