Smugglers of exotic animals go untamed

Hyderabad: Forest and police departments have to be strengthened in South India to tackle the increasing smuggling of exotic animals. According to Shekhar Kumar Niraj, head of Traffic India, a joint wildlife trade monitoring cell of WWF and IUCN, there is a jump in the smuggling of exotic animals in south Indian states.

Exotic animals are being smuggled to not just cities like Hyderabad, Bengaluru and Chennai but to even smaller cities like Vijayawada, Madurai, Mysuru and Kochi. In the corporate world exotic pets are gifted to impress clients.

The recent escape of Orangutan smugglers from the clutches of forest and police department officials in Andhra Pradesh has brought to the fore the lack of preparedness. Similar issues exist in other states too.

The exotic species are usually transported from West Bengal to south India by road. However, the Orangutan case was the first such one to surface in the state. As of now the Andhra Pradesh forest department does not have any vigilance officers at its headquarters in Hyderabad.

Niraj says, that even if smugglers are caught they escape as there is no environmental law in India providing protection to exotic species other than the Customs Act. It is very difficult to prove smugglers guilty under this law. Due to lack of laws the forest departments are not able to do anything about the breeding of exotic birds and primates.