Latest news with #WildlifeProtectionAct1972
The Hindu
2 days ago
- The Hindu
Six animals seized from air passengers
Six live animals were seized from two passengers by the Customs Air Intelligence Unit at the Kochi airport. The passengers who arrived by a Thai Air flight were intercepted by Customs officials based on profiling at the exit gate. A detailed examination of their checked-in baggage led to the recovery of a Hyacinth Macaw, three Common Marmoset, and two White-lipped Tamarin. The passengers were handed over to the forest officials for further investigation. As per the provisions of the EXIM policy, import of live animals listed under the Wildlife Protection Act 1972 and the CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) is strictly regulated. Commercial trade of species listed under CITES and Appendix 1 and Schedule IV of Wildlife Protection Act 1972 also remains prohibited.
Indian Express
3 days ago
- Indian Express
Karnataka: Three held for poisoning carcass that killed tigress, four cubs
Three men have been arrested in connection with the recent deaths of a tigress and her four cubs at Male Mahadeshwara Hills Wildlife Sanctuary — India's largest single-day tiger mortality since Project Tiger's launch. The accused — Konappa, Madaraju, and Nagaraj — are residents of Koppa village within the sanctuary. They have been charged under the Wildlife Protection Act 1972 and the Karnataka Forest Act 1963. A local court sent the accused to judicial custody for three days. Forest Minister Eshwar Khandre confirmed the arrests on Saturday, stating that all three suspects were directly involved in poisoning cattle carcass that was subsequently consumed by a tigress and her four cubs. The breakthrough came after Shivanna, the father of the accused Madaraju, was detained on Friday and confessed to knowledge of the crime. Senior sanctuary officials revealed that preliminary questioning of Shivanna unravelled the crime committed by the accused, including his son. 'Based on his confessions, we have arrested three people… Shivanna and some others were aware of the conspiracy,' said a forest official. Madaraju initially fled after his father's arrest but was apprehended later. According to a police officer, the tigress and her cubs were killed following tiger attacks on cattle. The accused deliberately sprayed pesticide on a cattle carcass, creating a deadly trap for the tigress and her cubs. Karnataka Forest Department has formed a high-level inquiry committee headed by Principal Chief Conservator of Forests B P Ravi and given 14 days to submit a comprehensive report. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has also formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the incident.
Canada News.Net
5 days ago
- Canada News.Net
Telangana: One person arrested in Hyderabad for smuggling elephant ivories
Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], June 25 (ANI): The sleuths of Special Operations Team, Rachakonda along with Forest Range Officials Ranga Reddy district apprehended one accused who was trying to sell the Elephant Ivories (tusks) illegally and seized two elephant ivories and one mobile phone from his possession, Commissioner of police Rachakonda said. The accused person has been identified as Rekulakunta Prasad (32 years), a resident of Annamaiah, Andhra Pradesh. Rachakonda Commissioner of Police Sudheer Babu said, 'The Task Force and forest officials apprehended a state gang who were transporting elephant ivory weighing 6.52 kg worth around Rs 3 crores in the international market... The accused were jailed previously, too. They came to Hyderabad to sell it. They are accused under the Wildlife Protection Act 1972.' He further said that the accused person, Rekulakunta Prasad, is a resident of Rayachoti, Andhra Pradesh and habituated to bad vices, used to earning easy money by doing illegal activities. 'Previously, he was involved in a Red Sanders logs smuggling case by RSASTF (Red Sanders Anti-Smuggling Task Force) PS, Tirupathi Dist. (A.P) and was lodged in Thirupathi sub-Jail in the month of February 2025. Another accused, Lokeshwar Reddy was also arrested in the Red Sanders logs smuggling case by the above Task Force police and lodged in the same Jail, where both of them became acquainted during their stay in Jail,' he said. 'After being released from jail, both the accused persons hatched a plan to sell Elephant ivory for wrongful and huge profits. As per their plan Lokeshwar Reddy went to Sheshachalam Forest of Tirupati district, Andhra Pradesh and procured two Elephant Ivories from Yanadula Tribals. After getting the Elephant Ivories, he informed the same to Prasad to sell at Hyderabad for excessive amount. Accordingly, they both boarded a private travel bus along with illegally gained Elephant Ivories and on Wednesday morning hours, reached LB Nagar, Hyderabad to sell the above two Elephant Ivories to prospective buyers,' he said. Sudheer Babu said that on the tip of information, SOT LB Nagar team along with Hayath Nagar Forest officials apprehended accused Rekulakunta Prasad and seized two numbers of Elephant Ivories and other incriminating material from his possession. 'Another accused Lokeshwar Reddy fled away from the spot. Efforts are underway to trace and apprehend the absconding accused Lokeshwar Reddy. The past criminal history of the arrested individual is also being verified,' he said. The proactive efforts of the Team of SOT LB Nagar Zone and Hayath Nagar Forest officials led to the successful interception of this smuggling racket, highlighting their continued commitment to combat smuggling activities and ensuring to protect the life of animals which are endangered species, as the Rachakonda police are keep vigil in all the aspects and criminals to curtail illegal activities. The above arrests were made under the direct supervision of G. Sudheer Babu, IPS., Commissioner of Police, Rachakonda and under the guidance of Md. Shakir Hussain, Addl. DCP, SOT, LB Nagar-Maheshwaram & Sai Prakash, Forest Range Officer, Hayath Nagar, Ranga Reddy dist. (ANI)
Hindustan Times
25-06-2025
- General
- Hindustan Times
22 Indian rock pythons hatched in artificial incubator
MUMBAI: On Tuesday, 22 eggs of the Indian rock python were hatched in an artificial incubator, almost a month after they were rescued from drainage pipelines in Vikhroli by Mumbai forest officials and volunteers of the Resqink Association for Wildlife Welfare (RAWW). Indian rock pythons are generally found in some vegetation pockets around the city, mainly in Sanjay Gandhi National Park or its outskirts. On May 18, RAWW and the forest officials received a distress call from workers who were carrying out pre-monsoon cleaning off the Eastern Express Highway in Vikhroli. As the work was underway, the workers spotted a female python protecting her 22 eggs inside a drainage pipeline. 'No one touched the python, as the drainage line was attached to the highway. If it had moved, it would have caused a problem on the busy street,' said Pawan Sharma, founder of RAWW. Sharma said that the rescued Indian rock python then underwent medical tests. 'Once the veterinarian confirmed that it was healthy, we released it in its natural habitat,' he added. The location of the release remains undisclosed, as the Indian rock python is protected under Schedule 1 of the Wildlife Protection Act 1972, and is at risk of being hunted or poached. After the release of the python, the eggs were handed over to the NGO by the forest officials and stored in an incubator at the RAWW office in Mulund. The incubator was fashioned out of a cardboard box and cushioned with activated charcoal, soil, coco peat (the inner fibre of a coconut) and fertilisers to create a suitable environment for the eggs. The incubator also had an attached digital thermometer to maintain the required 27 to 29 degrees Celsius and the humidity level. 'We would check the temperature every two days,' said Chinmay Joshi, zoologist, who overlooked the process of hatchlings. Indian rock pythons are generally found in some vegetation pockets around the city, mainly in Sanjay Gandhi National Park or its outskirts, Thane creek, and Tungareshwar Sanctuary in Vasai-Virar. 'During the monsoons, they tend to take shelter in drainage pipes, as these provide an ideal habitat where food is also easily available, and the temperature is easy to maintain,' said Joshi. Pythons are a species that can hunt anything from a small rabbit to a spotted deer by themselves. Of the 22 eggs, about six to seven hatched on Monday, while the rest hatched by Tuesday evening. 'The fitness of the eggs was determined when the python was rescued,' said Sharma. 'Once the veterinarian gives us the go-ahead, we will release the baby snakes into their natural habitat, given that these species have natural mechanisms to survive in the wild.'
Scroll.in
20-06-2025
- General
- Scroll.in
Jharkhand: Stone mining is driving nilgai into fields, destroying harvest
Sirajoodeen Ansari, a 65-year-old farmer, has watched season after season of hard labour go to waste. 'First, I cultivated paddy, but it was completely ruined. Then I planted maize. Again, it was completely destroyed. And when the rabi season arrived, and I sowed wheat, not a single grain was spared by the nilgai,' says the farmer from Murumdag village in Chhatarpur block, Palamu district of Jharkhand. Ansari is not alone. In this arid patch of Palamu, where water is scarce and the soil unforgiving – farmers wage a nightly vigil over their fields. For two and a half months, they lie awake, patrolling the wheat under the moonlight, yet any momentary lapse, 'even the blink of an eye', as one farmer puts it, is enough to miss the speedy descent of the nilgai (Boselaphus tragocamelus) that strips the crop bare. Protected under Schedule III of the Wildlife Protection Act 1972, these animals move with impunity. Mahfooz Alam, another resident of Murumdag, describes their makeshift defence mechanisms, 'I would take four dogs into the fields and tie them at the foot of my charpoys [rope cots] so that if any nilgai comes, the dogs would bark, and it would wake me.' Despite such precautions, Alam lost his entire harvest this year to destruction by the nilgai, sustaining a loss of Rs 1 lakh. Just 10 years ago, such devastation was unheard of. 'Back then, the land yielded so much lentil that after saving enough for our own needs, we used to sell five quintals,' Alam recalls. 'There were no nilgai to worry about; we simply planted and harvested.' The turning point came with the onset of stone-crusher mining in the area, the village residents complain. As heavy machinery tore through the earth, it disrupted the animals' natural habitat and drove them onto farmland. For farmers like Ansari and Alam, the toll is more than financial; it is a loss of security and dignity. 'How long can we guard our fields?' asks Alam. 'If I stay awake all night, I must sleep during the day – and then the nilgai strike', referring to the extent of the problem where they are now concerned about nilgai attacking their fields at all times of the day. Both the farmers have borrowed money from relatives to meet their farming expenses, and they are now trapped in a cycle of debt. With their farms being run over by the nilgai, they have lost any hope of repayment. With mounting debts and diminishing yields, the farmers face an uncertain future. 'Forget about the next generation; from this year, I will not do farming,' says Alam in anger. Alam and Ansari are among the last handful of farmers in their village who are still farming. 'The rest have either left farming and migrated to work as labourers or are doing some other work,' explains Ansari. But these individual losses are part of a much larger trend. According to the latest data obtained by Mongabay India from Jharkhand's District Forest Department, since 2000, when the state of Jharkhand was formed, Palamu district has recorded 4,787 human-animal conflict incidents, with Rs 38.9 million paid in compensation so far. Of these, 586 were crop damage cases – destroying over 300 hectares of farmland – while 23 involved livestock losses and 54 were incidents of house damage. So far, these conflicts have claimed 10 lives and injured 22 people. In case of death due to a nilgai attack, there is a provision for compensation of Rs 4 lakh. For crop damage, compensation ranges from Rs 10,833 per hectare to a maximum of Rs 21,666. However, neither Alam nor Ansari was aware of this compensation. Stone mining 'There are several reasons for the increasing human-animal conflict: population growth, infrastructure development, and mining activities,' says Satyam Kumar, Divisional Forest Officer, Medininagar, the administrative headquarters of Palamu district. 'Population growth and infrastructure development are purely push factors, but mining acts as both a push and a pull factor,' he adds. He means that mining not only destroys ecosystems and pushes wildlife out but also draws human settlements and activities deeper into forest areas, increasing the likelihood of conflict. The Medininagar Forest Division, which covers all seven forest ranges of Palamu district – Chainpur, Chhatarpur East, Chhatarpur West, Kundri, Manatu, Mohammad Ganj and Patan – spans over 154,000 hectares. 'We have a large, notified forest area, but the quality, density and canopy cover of the forest land itself are not very good,' says Kumar. Of the seven forest ranges in Palamu, only Manatu and Kundri still have healthy tree cover. 'In those two ranges, human-animal conflict is very low,' Kumar explains. 'But in the other ranges, there are so many stone crushers.' Where crushers and mines break up the forest, wildlife moves closer to villages, looking for water and grazing land. 'For tree regeneration, you need water and good soil. You do not want pollution.' When dust from mines settles on leaves and soil, young shoots cannot grow. The hard, polluted ground cannot hold water, and seeds fail to sprout. The mining industry brings more than dust. 'Habitat fragmentation is taking place,' says Kumar. 'The water table is dropping, so forest productivity is going down. Natural ponds and streams are drying up. Even the nilgai cannot find water.' With fewer rainy days and polluted soils, forests lose their natural balance. Plants die, animals wander into farmland, and conflict rises. Early findings To assess the impact of mining and crusher operations on local biodiversity, the Medininagar Forest Division has launched a pilot study at the beginning of 2025 at sites with the highest concentration of extractive activity – Itakdag, Murumdag, Bachkoma, Charai, and others in Palamu district. Under the chairmanship of the Divisional Forest Officer, a dedicated team — guided in part by Indian Forest Service probationer Navaneeth BR — is conducting a preliminary evaluation using Forest Survey of India reports, recent satellite imagery, and on-the-ground observations. 'The initial findings reveal that mining and crusher operations have had clear negative effects on flora, fauna, and water bodies – damage that is already exacerbating human-wildlife conflict in the region,' says Navaneeth BR. As part of this preliminary investigation, a comparative study is being carried out between villages located in mining zones and those outside them. Initial observations indicate that areas with rampant illegal mining have experienced greater biodiversity loss, reduced water bodies, and increased human-animal conflict. In contrast, villages without illegal mining have shown improvements in biodiversity, an increase in water bodies, and a decline in human-animal conflict. Mongabay India also visited three villages where the study is being conducted, Murumdag, Cherai, and Bachkoma and documented the same patterns of habitat degradation and biodiversity loss. As one crossed the rural roads of Chattarpur block, clouds of dust, the distant roar of crushers, and convoys of laden lorries made it impossible to ignore the scale of disturbance to both wildlife and local communities. Current mining laws Kumar says current mining laws aren't strict enough. Companies only need to stay 250 metres from the forest edge – too small a distance since dust still drifts in and stops young trees from growing. He argues the buffer should be at least one kilometre. The law also calls for a green belt around each mine and sprinklers to control dust. In Palamu, though, most mines and crushers ignore these rules: they remove green belts, skip dust systems, and over-pump groundwater, says Satyam Kumar. Without strong oversight, forests bear the full brunt of mining. 'And with only a 250-metre buffer, the forest remains under constant pressure from illegal mining,' he adds. The impact is visible. According to Forest Survey of India data, between 2011 and 2021, Palamu's water bodies shrank from 6,929.21 ha to 4,985.54 ha – a decline of 1,943.67 ha (about 28.1%). Over the same decade, very dense forest cover fell from 5,369.35 ha to 5,149.01 ha, a loss of 220.34 ha (about 4.1%). When asked about the decline in very dense forests, Harsha Kumar – a GIS expert with the Palamu Forest Division – points to deeper structural issues. 'It's not just about dense forest – there's hardly any regeneration happening,' he says. 'Let's say in 2011, there was open forest, and plantation work was underway. The division covers 1,688 sq km, but how much can we realistically plant? Even if we manage one sq km per year, in 10 years, that's only 10 sq km added through plantations. Meanwhile, mining can destroy 25 sq km in the same period. So even if we gain ten square km through planting, we lose far more to mining.' Forest guards are also ill-equipped to deal with illegal mining. 'Each forest guard is responsible for nearly 30 sq km of forest territory, but it isn't one contiguous block – 2 sq km here, 4 sq km there, 8 sq km elsewhere… that's how fragmented it is,' says Kumar. Most guards are unarmed and poorly equipped, leaving them vulnerable to periodic attacks by the mining mafia. In one recent incident, five forest guards were brutally beaten, according to the FIR registered at the Chhatarpur Block Police Station on March 23, 2025. When contacted, forest guard Ashutosh Tiwari explained, 'All of us live in fear of the mafia – none of our attackers have been arrested. We have no weapons, so when we're beaten, there's no justice.' Palamu currently has over 300 legally registered stone-crusher units, according to the Jharkhand Department of Mines and Geology. But those official numbers may only be the tip of the iceberg. Village residents and Satyam Kumar both estimate that unlicensed – or outright illegal – crushing units could outnumber the legal ones by a wide margin. 'All night, you can hear tractors roaring from the forest edge, blasting loud music and crushing stone,' says Kanhai Prasad of Charai village. He shows the damage, and even his mesh netting can't stop. 'Ours was once a prosperous village, but not anymore.' He has set up a mesh net around a plot near his house to protect the vegetables he is already growing from nilgai. The 64-year-old farmer owns six acres of land, but it isn't all in one place. As the nilgai invasion intensified in his village, his cultivated area kept shrinking. Now, he can only farm the three bighas (about 2.2 acres) right next to his home. 'How can I possibly guard all of it by myself?' he says in frustration. Way forward 'To combat man-animal conflict, we're zoning the entire Medininagar Forest Division into three distinct areas. First, zones that are comparatively richer in biodiversity and already have water sources will be developed further to create even better habitats,' says Kumar. Second, in the scrub and open-forest zones, we will carry out massive plantations of native species under the Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority, or CAMPA, and Green Credit Scheme, alongside grading operations and the creation of new water bodies. Third, for the completely rocky areas, we will consult expert institutions – such as the Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education and the Institute of Forest Productivity in Ranchi, as well as other specialised bodies – to advise us on the best grading techniques.' 'Even if the government gives us nothing more,' Ansari sighed, 'just enough mesh fencing per acre – and we'd stand a chance.'
