"Statistics are so important to get the bigger picture," says the 57-year-old wildlife conservationist and executive director of Wildlife Protection Society of India or WPSI, an NGO.
Interpol estimates global illegal trade in wildlife products is worth around $20 billion. "It is significant that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) views wildlife crimes as a form of economic offences," says Samir Sinha, head of wildlife trade monitoring body TRAFFIC India, and a forest officer of the Uttaranchal cadre, who has previously worked in the Corbett and Rajaji national parks.
Animal parts reportedly go for at least $20 for every 10 gm. "Poachers are no longer making a petty few thousands, they stand to gain in lakhs for a skin in good condition," discloses Wright. That the conviction rate for wildlife crimes is less than 2% in India, identified as an important source market for these products by international policing agency Interpol, is not least on account of the many challenges of gathering evidence and of getting a conviction.
Not surprisingly then, the Supreme Court judgment on October 20 declining wildlife trader Sansar Chand's special leave petition has given both government probe agencies and wildlife protection NGOs something to cheer about. Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB) additional director Rina Mitra, who has six years' experience in the CBI, sees the judgment as a shot in the arm for law enforcers. “The court gave a beautiful judgment," she says.
The apex court in its judgment had said: “...persons like the appellant are the head of a gang of criminals who do illegal trade in wildlife. They themselves do not do poaching, but they hire persons to do the work of poaching. Thus a person like the appellant herein remains behind the scene, and for this reason it is not possible to get direct evidence against him." Read the full report here.
Source: Chanpreet Khurana, The Financial Express, New Delhi.
