One of the langurs rescued on Saturday is fighting multiple infections, an official in the state forest department said on Sunday.

All four animals that were found trapped in nylon bags — an Asiatic lion cub and three langurs — are still under stress and will need at least three weeks’ hospitalisation, the officials said.

The rescued animals were taken to the Alipore zoo hospital on Saturday.

The three-month-old lion cub, which weighs 15kg and is about 1.5ft tall, was shifted to a bigger cage in the zoo hospital on Sunday.

“The cub is still weak but recuperating well. It ate chicken. All the animals are still stressed. They will need two to three days to become stable and have to remain in the zoo hospital for at least 21 days,” an official in the forest department said.

Among the other rescued animals, one is Javan langur and two White Headed langurs.

“The tail of the Javan langur is infected. A part of the tail, around 2inch from the tip, is rotting. The flesh has almost worn off the infected portion,” the official said. “Its fingers are infected, too.”

One of the langurs that were rescued The Telegraph picture

Some of the nylon bags in which the animals were being smuggled. The Telegraph picture

The Javan langur is about 2 years old. The animal weighs 4kg and its height is around 1.5ft.

The two White Headed langurs are five years old.

Some officials in the forest department had said on Saturday that all three langurs were White Headed and one of them was six months old.

A zoo official said the infection in the tail could be difficult to cure.

“Tail infections are usually difficult to manage. We are dressing the wound, giving it medicines and administering injections. If these do not work, the infected portion may have to be surgically removed,” the official said.

The ailing langur ate cabbage, apples and leaves on Sunday.

The White Headed langurs, the official said, are not eating adequately and seem to be traumatised.

The Asiatic Lion is protected under Schedule 1 of the Wildlife Protection Act. The International Union for Classification of Nature has classified white-headed langur as a “critically endangered” species and Asiatic lion as “endangered”.

The four animals were rescued from a Mahindra Scorpio on Belghoria Expressway near Dakshineswar around 2am on Saturday. Officials said they were being smuggled from Bangladesh.

Three men were arrested. All have been released on bail.