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The sale
of wild animals or birds and their products is illegal in India. The major
applicable laws for prohibiting such sales are:
Where
can you usually find wildlife and wild animal products?
•any tourist
spot
•leather
factories which may be illegally processing wild animal skins
•Large temples
and places around such temples
•Tribal areas
•Local medicine
men
•Tibetan
monasteries/centres
•City animal
markets
•Pet shops
•Railway
stations
•Taxidermists
•Kashmiri
Traders
•Tibetan
Traders
What
can you do?
Before you
start trying to apprehend criminals make sure you know the law. Remember
you can not enforce the law if you break it yourself. Also train youself
in the recognition of violation of acts. Under any of the previously mentioned
Acts it is illegal to carry on such activity. When you see such illegal
markets you have two options:
(a) File
an FIR (First Information Report) at the nearest police station. Lodging
an FIR alone will usually not be sufficient. Insist on a senior police
officer accompanying you to the site of the market as soon as possible.
This will make it possible to arrest the person/persons involved while
they are committing the crime and before they have a chance to escape.
(b) The second
option is referred to as a “citizens arrest”. Under Section 43 of CPC
every citizen has a right to arrest any person who has committed in his/her
presence a “cognizable offence”. A person conducting the arrest also has
the right to search the offender and place in safe custody the articles
found on him. The person has to hand over the offender and articles at
the earliest to a police station.
Other than
this if there are foreign birds or animals or articales made from such
animal products in the market, it could be a crime under CITES, CITES
is an international convention that regulates export/import of endangered
agencies between the member countries. Since India ia a signatory, it
will be illegal to import such foreign bird/ animals as are listed under
CITES. This offence can be reported to the Directorate of CITES or any
officer of the WPA. Secondly, if the bird/animal is protected in its country
of origin, the person in possession of it is guilty under the Indian Customs
Act, since the bird has been illegally imported into India.
What
else can you can do?
1. You will
have to block the markets. Till there are markets for animals and animal
products, whatever the punishment for trading in them, there will be people
to sell them. Blocking markets can be done effectively through the media,
by advertisements etc, highlighting how the purchase of animals/products
directly affects the natural ecosystem and the survival of individual
animals in the wild.
For every
bird that is sold to the customer, 1000 die during capture and transport.
2. All wild
animals enter the city from outside the urban centres. These animals are
usually brought in via train or bus. Birds usually form the bulk of illegal
trade. In many places it is a common sight to see thousands of birds being
brought in on trucks or buses. If this is the case in your town:
Wildlife
Protection Act (WPA), 1972
This act
specifically prohibits the hunting and trade in any wild animal or animal
parts including skin, ivory, claws, shells of turtles etc. The agencies
protected under this act are given under Schedules I - IV of the act.
Further, section 57 of WPA raises a legal presumption that if anyone is
in possession, custody or control of any captive animal (including birds),
it shall be presumed that the person is not in lawful possession of such
captive animal.
The Prevention
of Cruelty to Animals Act (PCA), 1960
This act
will apply if the animals kept in the market are kept in such a way that
causes them pain or suffering [Section ll (l)(a) ], transports it in such
a way that causes it pain or suffering [Section ll (i) (d)], keep such
an animal confined to any cage/receptacle which does not measure sufficiently
in height, length or breadth to permit the animal reasonable opportunity
to move around [Section ll (i) (c)] or keeps an animal tethered for long
period on a short chain [Section ll (l) (f) ].
Local
Police Acts
The police
act is applicable in your state and prohibits any person from exposing
an animal for sale in any street/ public place. For example see Section
82 of Delhi Police Act, which categorically prohibits such activity.
Local
Municipal Corporation Acts
Prohibits
any person to “hawk or expose for sale in any place any article whatsoever
without a valid license”. A persons selling wild animals can never possess
such a license, as his activity is per se illegal.
Other
relevant Acts
These include
the Foreign Trade (Development & Regulation Act) 1992, India Penal Code,
1860; The Code of Criminal Procedure, 1974; the Arms Act, 1959.
What are
illegal items that you can look for?
There are
any number of illegal items you can look for in such animal markets. These
range from wild animals to their products or finished articles made from
wild animal products. However, some of the more easily recognised ones
are:
•Any wild
animal whether indigenous or not being kept and/ or sold or made to suffer
in any way.
•Any wildbird
whether indigenous or not being kept and/ or sold, with the exception
of the Blue Rock Pigeon (columbea livea). Keeping birds like Munia, Parakeet,
Peacocks, Baya weaver birds, Koel, Owls and love birds is illegal under
Section IV of the WPA.
•Keeping
or selling or treating any other life form, live reptiles, bees, butterflies,
etc. or the eggs of reptiles or birds is also illegal.
•Selling
skins (cured, uncured) of any animal listed under Schedules of the WPA
or practicing taxidermy on such animals.
•Selling/keeping
shells of tortoises/turtles.
•Selling/keeping
corals or shells or items made from them.
•Selling
or keeping any ivory or items made from ivory.
•Claws of
carnivores, horns of antelopes or trophies of any sort, are all illegal
•Any street
medicine which uses wild animals or their products is illegal e.g.bat,
bear bile, tiger penis etc.
•The sale
of musk obtained fom musk deer is also illegal.
Act locally
by putting up posters at bus stops clearly spelling out what trade is
illegal, the penalty and that people can report such incidences etc.
- In case
of some birds like parakeets and munias etc. you may know the part of
the country that they are found and thus the area that they are coming
from. You will then have to make a group in that part of the country to
help stop the trade.
3. It can
be taken for granted that all pet shops that legally sell pets (dogs,
cats etc.) are illegally selling all other animals kept in the shop. If
there is such a shop in your locality inform them of the conequences of
trade in protected species. If this does not work file an FIR and have
the animals confiscated. If he is selling wild birds etc. you can report
such practices to your local wildlife warden too.
4. Keep a
group of informants in the market place who can report to you on a regular
basis. With their help will come to know if a large consignment is due
and be able to mobilize the police or wildlife officials to seize such
catches.
5. Be prepared
to meet resistance with the local police. Many times there is a nexus
between them and the market place. Thus the police turns a blind eye to
illegal trade in return for their “hafta” (regular bribe). Be prepared
to move the court in case the police are uncooperative.
6. You can
put up slides at your local theatre telling people that trade in any wild
animal/bird is illegal. Give them specific examples like rabbits, monkey
babies, tortoises etc. Inform them also that all animal products (like
ivory tortoise shell etc.) are illegal. Give contact numbers to immedately
report cases when they see such trade.
7. Patrol
the market at least 3 times a week in a group. If you see any wild animal
or bird or product for sale, mob the shopkeeper, threaten him with the
police, raise a confusion and in the confusion take the animal or product
and run. Once the traders realize that you will not give up, they may
feel harassed enough to give up such trade for more legal pursuits.
8. Localize
the places you usually find such trade in your locality. Usually the trade
is maximum in areas near schools and colleges. In residential areas people
may be hawking animals from door to door on a cycle. This too is illegal.
9. Find the
one person in your local corporation or police satation who is honestly
making a difference. This may be difficult but will pay off in the long
run.
10. Offer
a reward and non-disclosure to anyone giving information about wildlife
trades. Give your phone number, email number and fax.
11. Give
an award to police officers who have assisted or initiated the stoppoing
of such sales
12. Butterflies
are usually sent through parcels. The main countries are Germany and Japan.
Tell the local post office to inspect any large parcels to these countries.
If
resources are limited what is the priority areas for stopping trade?
Resources
are always limited. So take up the control in a prioritized manner. In
order of importance you must:
- Catch
the person organizing the trade. Traders tend to collect a large number
of items from individual small time poachers. So it is easier and more
effective to attack them.
- Educate
the consumer on the implications of their buying wildlife/wildlife products.
With no market the trade will have to shut down.
- Catch the
individual poachers. This is the most difficult and costly method. Also
since the poachers are usually poor people in it for the money, if your
first 2 steps have helped control the demand, the poachers will not get
as high a price for their efforts and will thus eventually stop on their
own.
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