Forest Officials from Andhra Pradesh receive training on effective law enforcement
TRAFFIC India and WWF-India in collaboration with Andhra Pradesh Forest Department conducted a two-day training workshop on wildlife law enforcement in Hyderabad at Andhra Pradesh Forest Academy, Dulapally (Hyderabad) from 17-18 April 2010. Forty five forest officials from various forest divisions of Andhra Pradesh participated in this training programme.
The workshop was aimed to update knowledge and skills of officers of the Andhra Pradesh Forest Department on issues of wildlife law enforcement. The programme included sessions and discussions on effective implementation of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972; important case judgments of the Hon’ble Supreme Court of India and High Courts pertaining to several sections of the WPA; procedures and protocols for wildlife crime investigation and guidelines for filing complaints and other court case filing procedures; overview of illegal international wildlife trade; wildlife forensics; and protocols on collection of wildlife samples for forensic analysis.
The key resource persons at the programme included Samir Sinha, Head-TRAFFIC India; Supreme Court Advocates ADN Rao, Ritwick Dutta & Saurabh Sharma; and Dr S P Goyal, wildlife forensic expert from Wildlife Institute of India.
Better sensitization and coordination among different agencies has to be the call of the day, said Mr Hitesh Malhotra (PCCF-Wildlife) who graced the occasion. Mrs C S Ramalakshmi, Director General of CEFNARM (Centre for Forest and Natural Resource Management Studies) highlighted the importance of wildlife conservation as a matter of global importance.
TRAFFIC India also provided resource material on various aspects of wildlife trade and enforcement during the programme. A forensic kit for field use was also distributed.
Samir Sinha, Head-TRAFFIC India said, “This capacity building programme will help in addressing various threats to different elements of the biodiversity of the state, ranging from Tigers and Leopards to important timber species like Red Sanders. Several innovative dimensions of wildlife law enforcement were introduced in this training programme that will help enable in bolstering the enforcement capacities of various officials participating in this training and to get a better understanding of the evolving nature of such threats. The Andhra Pradesh Forest Department deserves commendation for taking the lead in organizing this training.”
The workshop was aimed to update knowledge and skills of officers of the Andhra Pradesh Forest Department on issues of wildlife law enforcement. The programme included sessions and discussions on effective implementation of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972; important case judgments of the Hon’ble Supreme Court of India and High Courts pertaining to several sections of the WPA; procedures and protocols for wildlife crime investigation and guidelines for filing complaints and other court case filing procedures; overview of illegal international wildlife trade; wildlife forensics; and protocols on collection of wildlife samples for forensic analysis.
The key resource persons at the programme included Samir Sinha, Head-TRAFFIC India; Supreme Court Advocates ADN Rao, Ritwick Dutta & Saurabh Sharma; and Dr S P Goyal, wildlife forensic expert from Wildlife Institute of India.
Better sensitization and coordination among different agencies has to be the call of the day, said Mr Hitesh Malhotra (PCCF-Wildlife) who graced the occasion. Mrs C S Ramalakshmi, Director General of CEFNARM (Centre for Forest and Natural Resource Management Studies) highlighted the importance of wildlife conservation as a matter of global importance.
TRAFFIC India also provided resource material on various aspects of wildlife trade and enforcement during the programme. A forensic kit for field use was also distributed.
Samir Sinha, Head-TRAFFIC India said, “This capacity building programme will help in addressing various threats to different elements of the biodiversity of the state, ranging from Tigers and Leopards to important timber species like Red Sanders. Several innovative dimensions of wildlife law enforcement were introduced in this training programme that will help enable in bolstering the enforcement capacities of various officials participating in this training and to get a better understanding of the evolving nature of such threats. The Andhra Pradesh Forest Department deserves commendation for taking the lead in organizing this training.”
Hyderabad workshop
