There are a number of South Asian organisations to check wildlife trade. These include South Asia Cooperative Environment Programme (SACEP), South Asia Wildlife Trade Initiative (SAWTI) and SAARC Convention on Cooperation on Environment to check the illegal trade of wildlife articles. Yet, the trade goes on unabated with India being a lucrative market worth 20 billion USD, a report of the MoEF states.
Referring to the “extremely gruesome" techniques of poaching, the report said, “ The more egregious methods include skinning or dehorning live animals and transportation of live creatures in inhuman conditions."
Intense poaching has resulted in disappearance of tigers from many parks throughout Asia. “Nowhere has the impact been greater than in India and Nepal which remain the bastions of tiger conservation," it said.
Accordingly the annual trade of wildlife articles probably ranks third after narcotics and the illegal weapons trade (quoting Interpol). The nations across the world are also signatories to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) of Wild Fauna and Flora, which was set up to ensure that international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten their survival. Read the full report here.
Source: Pioneer News Service, The Pioneer, New Delhi.
