Env Min to display photos of highly endangered animals at airports to check their illegal trade
New Delhi: A campaign to protect "highly endangered" animals -Tiger, Pangolin and Star Tortoise- hunted for illegal trading internationally, has been launched by the Ministry of Environment at major airports in the country.
The campaign 'Not all animals migrate by choice' has been launched ahead of the International Day of Biological Diversity, to be celebrated on May 22, by C K Mishra, Secretary, Ministry of Environment and Forests and actor and United Nations Environment Goodwill Ambassador Dia Mirza here. Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB), UN Environment and GMR Group are also part of the campaign.
"Conservation is innate to India's ethos. While wildlife faces threat across the globe and India's flora and fauna's demand continues in illegal global markets, in keeping with our stringent provisions for protection of wildlife under the Wild life (Protection) Act, 1972, efforts towards creating awareness among public at large would go a long way to help protect our wildlife," said Mishra. "In the first phase of the campaign, Tiger, Pangolin, Star Tortoise and Tokay Gecko have been chosen as they are highly endangered due to illegal trading in International markets. "Tiger is traded for its skin, bones and body parts; Pangolin, the most illegally traded wild mammal on the planet is trafficked for its meat and its scales are used in traditional medicines; Star Tortoise for meat and pet trade and Tokay Gecko in traditional medicine mostly into South East Asia and particularly Chinese Markets. Phase two will see more threatened species and explore other routes of trafficking," said an official statement from the ministry. The campaign aims at creating awareness and garnering public support for the protection and conservation of wildlife, prevention of smuggling and reduction in demand for wildlife products, said the official. "There is an urgent need for awareness, action and stringent enforcement of laws to put an end to all illegal wildlife trade threatening biodiversity and conservation in the wild. This campaign is an important step forward in creating much-needed awareness on wildlife trafficking which threatens the very survival of these species," said Atul Bagai, Head, UN Environment India.
