PM Putin tags polar bear in Russia`s Arctic

Moscow: Prime Minister Vladimir Putin is
playing the eco warrior in Russia`s Arctic, helping scientists
track endangered polar bears and calling for a clean up of the
pristine region.
Putin travelled to Franz Josef Land, off the northwest
coast of Russia`s mainland, today in the latest display of his
prowess as an adventurer.
Wearing a bright red coat and cap, the 57-year-old
premier kneeled at the head of a tranquilised polar bear to
attach a satellite-tracking collar, then helped elevate the
sedated beast for weighing. He shook its paw and uttered the
words: "Be well."

Putin also called for thousands of barrels of Soviet-era
fuel littering the region to be removed.

PTI