Ministry set to move Cabinet on wildlife cell

The Union Environment Ministry has decided to move the Cabinet to set up the much-awaited National Wildlife Crime Cell to tackle trans-natio...

The Union Environment Ministry has decided to move the Cabinet to set up the much-awaited National Wildlife Crime Cell to tackle trans-national wildlife crime, particularly the tiger skin trade.

Sources said Environment Minister D. Raja has instructed the officials to prepare the draft Cabinet note for the creation of the new cell and make it functional by February next year.

The decision to set up the wildlife cell was taken this month after officials of the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA), an NGO, met Home Minister Shivraj Patil and Raja, urging them to set up the unit as tiger skin products from India were finding their way to China and Korea via the Nepal-Tibet axis.

Story continues below this ad

While the proposal for setting up this unit has been hanging fire for the past four years, the Ministry is now planning out the framework of the cell that will have officers from customs, police and forests departments.

The need for this unit has acquired urgency after the haul of 31 tiger and 581 leopard skins in Tibet last October. Although New Delhi dismissed it as ‘‘not from India’’, further investigations have revealed a distinct Indian connection but there has been no follow-up at the Ministry-level.

The link between India and the Nepal-Tibet-China axis along the traditional trade routes has been established for illegal wildlife products. However, there is complete lack of coordination between these countries to carry out enforcement operations. Perhaps, the setting up of the National Crime Cell would provide the much-needed teeth to the enforcement agencies.