New Delhi, 12 September, 2019: More than 50 senior officials from the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau, National Tiger Conservation Authority, enforcement agencies and representatives from internet companies and e-commerce, such as Google, Flipkart and India mart met in New Delhi to work on measures to curb wildlife trade in cyber space. The stake holder meeting was organized by TRAFFIC – India to find measures to curb the illegal online trade in wildlife and its derivatives.

“India is the only country in the world that conserve its wildlife only for conservation. We don’t put any monetary value to our wildlife; for us conservation of our wildlife is for the existence of mankind itself’, the Director General of the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change Shri. Siddhanta Das IFS said about the wildlife conservation policies.  IFAW- WTI joined the meeting as part of the global coalition to curb the illegal trade in wildlife in the cyber space which is considered as an emerging threat to wildlife and biodiversity security these days where the internet and tech enabled platforms are used to facilitate wildlife crime.

[acx_slideshow name=”stake”]

The participants shared the need for better measures to curb the Illegal Wildlife Trade online and the role each one has to play.   Mrs. Tilotama Varma, IPS, Additional Director, WCCB spoke about the need for increased cooperation between enforcement agencies in dealing with wildlife crime that is connected with many other organized crimes and poses a threat to national security.

Ms Isabella Detwiler, Acting Minister Counselor for Economic, Environment, Science and technology Affairs, US embassy, spoke about the international concern about increased occurrence of wildlife crime. She appreciated efforts of India in wildlife conservation and the way Indian life is connected with forests and wildlife. She assured the support of the US government in combating wildlife crime across the world.

Shri SP Yadav, IFS spoke about the increasing demand for cubs of large cats in the pet industry and recalled various events of recovery of cubs from pet traders within India and how the pet trade is now taking serious shape into organized illegal trade.

Shri Ramesh Pandey, IFS   summarised the problem by comparing our current understanding of wildlife crime across the globe to the “Shadow of the tip of iceberg “and spoke about the need for understanding the complex networks, modus operandi and players in the cyber space before taking action so that deep understanding of these networks will help enforcement agencies to dismantle them totally rather than isolated busts of smaller gangs and players.

The participating tech companies and representatives of corporate houses were supportive of all the efforts of enforcement agencies in fighting wildlife crime. The need for necessary amendments in the IT Act and policy and the need for training and capacity building of enforcement officials in cybercrime investigation, documentation and evidence management was highlighted by the legal experts.

Jose Louies from IFAW- WTI discussed about the ways and methods which are used these days by traders in the internet with case studies of successful collaboration of agencies and NGOs in fighting wildlife crime.

The participants listed out a number of steps to be taken in the near future and the need for collaboration to make a significant dent in the extensive world of wildlife crime in cyberspace.