Alwar, June 20, 2011: In a landmark judgement, the Court of the Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate – II, Alwar, Rajasthan convicted noted wildlife poacher Juhru and his associates, Tayyeb, Ramzan, Noora and Jiwan Das, sentencing them to a maximum imprisonment of seven years and a fine of Rs 50,000, in a case related to tiger hunting in the Sariska Tiger Reserve in 2005.
According BS Nathawat, ACF Sariska Tiger Reserve, the hunting took place in Routkhola beat of Akbarpur range, … Read More
Three poachers were arrested here with around 30 tortoises meant for smuggling, police said on Monday. Trade of tortoises is banned in India under the 1972 Wildlife Protection Act. … Read More
Narayan Chand, younger brother of notorious poacher Sansar Chand, has been sentenced to five years imprisonment in a leopard poaching case dating back to 2005. Narayan Chand is infamous as the poacher who was responsible for the poaching which eradicated the tigers in Sariska Tiger Reserve. Following his arrest in 2009, Narayan Chand confessed to having been involved in the purchase of pelts and body parts of 10 tigers from the Ramnagar area of Corbett Reserve. He also confessed to … Read More
The central empowered committee (CEC), appointed by the Supreme Court to look into the cases related to the violation of Forest (Conservation) Act and Wildlife (Protection) Act, has fixed July 6 for the hearing of the case related to the violation of rules in a road widening work inside Valmiki Tiger Reserve (VTR) of Bihar. The CEC admitted the case on the basis of a petition filed by Ashok Kumar, vice-chairman of Wildlife Trust of India (WTI) based on an … Read More
Police arrested three armed poachers in the Bihali area of Sonitpur district in Assam, while trying to sneak into Kaziranga National Park. The three were found during a combing operation, hiding in the house of a local. The local escaped. A .303 rifle, ammunition, some food and camp materials were found on them. It is believed their plan was to spend a week inside Kaziranga and poach Rhinos. … Read More
Background
Most conservationists would have heard of the National Green Tribunal (NGT), and some may have already filed applications before it. This short primer explains how, when and where to approach the NGT, and looks at the fundamental difference between courts and tribunals, and the structure and jurisdiction of the NGT.
The NGT was established on October 18, 2010 under the National Green Tribunal Act 2010, passed by the Central Government. The stated objective of the Central Government was to … Read More
Excerpts from a presentation given by Biswajit Mohanty in Bangalore on 23rd August 2013. You can reach him for questions or comments at kachhapa@gmail.com.
What is Government?
This is a difficult question for an ordinary Indian citizen. He/she knows that Government is an omnipotent and omnipresent entity but is not exactly sure who “Government” is. When you want something from any government office, you will frequently hear the words … “Government will decide”. If there are dues/taxes to be … Read More
Introduction
While drafting the Constitution of India, the Constituent Assembly debated issues about forests and wild animals and their inclusion in the Central, State or Concurrent List. Finally, when the Constitution was adopted, forests, wild animals, and birds were included in the State List.
This was later amended in 1976 and the subjects, forests and protection of wild animals were moved to the Concurrent List under the Seventh Schedule (Article 246) of the Constitution. This amendment enables both the Central … Read More
Acting on specific intelligence, customs sleuths in the Guwahati airport confiscated an Ahmedabad bound parcel containing 3.45 kgs of Ivory. The parcel was seized as it was being boarded onto a Spicejet flight. The Ivory was concealed under paddy husks and the value of the tusks is estimated to be around Rs. 10.35 lakhs in the domestic market and crores abroad. Smuggling in the north east is increasingly said to be taking an aerial route.… Read More
The MoEF has indicted politicians and senior officials of the Haryana government for corruption and violation of environmental laws. It has also indicted the Centrally Empowered Committee (CEC) of the Supreme Court for going beyond its powers. The inquiry report had found embezzling of funds, violation of Supreme Court and Environmental Laws , hounding of a whistle blower and connivance to save the guilty. The CEC instead of prosecuting the guilty had asked the Haryana Government to deposit a sum … Read More
Reworked from Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF) Report May 2007*.
Many people are under the impression that India does not have strong wildlife conservation laws. On the contrary, we have some of the most stringent legislations to protect wildlife and habitats. It is imperative that all conservationists familiarize themselves with these laws, so that they can contribute effectively. It is also vital to understand which institutions control land in India before any conservation interventions can be attempted in any landscape. … Read More
In a letter to the Chief Ministers of all states, Union Minister of State for Environment and Forests, Jairam Ramesh has asked that the Forest Departments be directed to treat Bamboo as a Minor Forest Produce as per the Forest Rights Act (FRA) 2006. This directive gives Scheduled Tribes and traditional forest dwellers the right to own, access to collect and dispose of Bamboo. The forest departments have been refusing control in the past, as the Indian Forest Act, treats … Read More
The Madras High Court has declared that the Tamil Government is fully empowered to notify The Elephant Corridor in Nilgiris District. The government is also empowered by the Centre’s Project Elephant. The court order concludes that no fault can be found with the government’s action to declare the corridor, as it has acted towards Article 51-A (g) of the constitution. The GO on the topic dated August 31, 2010 had been questioned by various parties as erroneous and that it … Read More
The Central Empowered Committee constituted by the Supreme Court has ordered that all construction activity that violates the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972 and other court directives, be stopped. The directive is the result of a petition by Belinda Wright, executive director of Wildlife Protection Society of India. Massive construction work is being undertaken by the forest department to construct 20 big dams. The forest department is undertaking these activities in response to a severe scarcity of water last summer. … Read More
Reworked from Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund Report May 2007* with inputs from Praveen Bhargav, Wildlife First.
To be an effective conservationist, it is important to understand which institutions control land in India and what laws govern the protection of forests and wildlife. Before any conservation interventions can be attempted in any landscape, the legal status of the land must first be ascertained so that one can engage with the correct authorities or agencies. This piece should be read alongside its … Read More
CI is a non-profit, non-commercial portal that aims to facilitate wildlife and nature conservation by providing reliable information and the tools needed to campaign effectively.
