MONTHLY FEATURE uuu POLICE AND SECURITY uuu OCTOBER, 1995

Dr.S.Subramanian, IPS (Retd.)

Illegal trade in wild flora and fauna is global in character and is second only to Drug traffic in magnitude. India is the home of many rare species of flora and fauna, which are sought after by the illegal trade. Our conservation efforts at great monetary cost have borne fruit and many species on the verger of extinction are reviving. But all this good work is being nullified by the acts of criminals indulging in illegal trade of wildlife and products.

Reports of the seizure of large quantities of wildlife products from different parts of India in the recent months, would give an indication about the extent and ramifications of this crime. While we have adequate laws, actual enforcement has been feeble and has failed to make any impact on the crime. There is urgent need to pay attention to strengthening enforcement effort to save our wildlife.

A multi-pronged enforcement strategy would consist of proactive efforts of creating an awareness amongst the general public about the crime and to enlist the cooperation of the local populace living in and around the forests and wildlife sanctuaries. Reactive strategies would include strengthening the protection and security arrangements in our national Parks, Sanctuaries and Forests to prevent wildlife and products from reaching illegal trade channels, controlling the movement, storage and transport of wildlife products and stringent action against sales outlets.

People in India love animals. Their religious ethos and social traditions prevent killing of wildlife. Survival of Black Buck, Elephants and Cobras are instances in point. People in general are not aware of the dimensions and methodology of illegal trade in wildlife and products and often due to lack of this knowledge, act as dumb spectators to the crime. First and foremost step is to create an awareness in the general public. A massive information campaign should be undertaken in the Media towards this end and the NGOs are to be fully involved in this.

It is certain that no poaching can take place without the knowledge, connivance and the indifference of villagers living in and around the protected areas. These people fail to pass on the information of poaching activities to protected area management staff mainly due to the lack of rapport, fears of reprisals from criminal elements and the feeling of alienation amongst them against the Management Staff due to severe restrictions imposed on the local population from having access and to utilisation of minor forest produce which robs them of their basic needs for grazing, fire-wood, small timber and thatch for habitation. This has also created great strains on the economy of these people. A dynamic management aimed at positive protections efforts which are people friendly would go a long way in enlisting cooperation of these people. Simultaneously, steps are to be taken to reduce the depredation of crops and cattle lifting by the wild animals.

Physical security arrangements in many of our protected areas leave much to be desired. In many places they provide unrestricted access and there are hardly any checks on the ingress or egress. The field staff are neither adequate, nor equipped and trained to deal with criminal elements, who are now equipped with sophisticated modes of transport and weapons. Militants and politically violent elements have encroached upon protected areas and there are reports that they look upon the illegal trade in wildlife and products to provide them with funds for fighting. There is no systematic approach to patrolling and hardly any schemes to respond to emergencies. Communication and transport systems available with enforcement staff are outdated. There is no motivation for the staff and hardly any coordination among various enforcement agencies including police at the ground level. Intelligence about illegal activities in protected areas is virtually non-existent and the staff are not familiar with the methods of collection and dissemination of intelligence.

Control over movement and transport of wildlife products call for close cooperation with many agencies. This is at present absent at the ground level. Surprise checks and raids on storage points, dealers and clandestine sales points also call for precision and coordination. The biggest law enforcement agency in the country, the police are hardly aware of their role in combating this crime.

The need to establish a Central Task Force, collect data and to establish a wildlife crime data bank have been stressed often but unfortunately no headway has been made in these directions.

Justice delayed is justice denied. Enormous delays in dealing with the criminals indulging in illegal trade by the courts have failed to produce any impact of judicial action on the criminals. There is need to establish special courts to expeditiously deal with the cases involving crime against wildlife.

Wildlife Management personnel are in need of specialised training in the handling of weapons, collection of intelligence, investigation and prosecution of criminals cases. They should be given special training to interact with environmental and wildlife preservation NGOs and activists in a positive manner and not to consider them as avoidable nuisance. Simultaneously, all law enforcement personnel are to be sensitised against this crime so that they could take prompt preventive and punitive action.

It is time, all of us strove hard to initiate positive steps to prevent the crime against wildlife, which has acquired menacing dimensions in our country.

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