Pay half of fine to informer: court’s bid to spur animal protection

Subject: Environment

Section: Species in news

Context:

In a first-of-its-kind judgement, a sessions court in Hanumangarh district of Rajasthan has ordered the payment of half of the fine amount, imposed on a convict in a Chinkara killing case, to the informer as a prize for helping in the detection of crime against wildlife.

Details:

The court said section 55(c) of the Wildlife Protection Act empowered the court to take cognisance of an offence on the complaint of a private person.
Besides, Article 51A (g) of the Constitution had laid down that the protection of wildlife and having compassion for living creatures was a fundamental duty of the citizens.

Chinkara (or Gazelle):

Rajasthan have two animals Camel and Chinkara as their state animals. Chinkara was declared a state animal in 1981, it is also known as a small deer.
The chinkara (Gazella bennettii), also known as the Indian gazelle, is a gazelle species native to Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India.
Distribution and habitat
- Chinkara live in arid plains and hills, deserts, dry scrub and light forests.
- They inhabit more than 80 protected areas in India.
- In Pakistan, they range up to elevations of 1,500 m (4,900 ft).
- In Iran, their largest population is the Kavir National Park.
- In 2001, the Indian chinkara population was estimated at 100,000 with 80,000 living in the Thar Desert.
- The population in Pakistan is scattered and has been severely reduced by hunting.
- Also in Iran, the population is fragmented.
- In Afghanistan, chinkaras are probably very rare.

The following six subspecies are considered valid:

Deccan chinkara (G. b. bennettii) (Sykes 1831) – ranges from South India, from the Ganges Valley (east to the borders of West Bengal) south at least to Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, Deccan Plateau;
Gujarat chinkara (G. b. christii) (Blyth, 1842) – ranges from the desert lowlands of Pakistan, western India, Rann of Kutch, Kathiawar, Saurastra region and as far east of Ahmedabad district in Gujarat.
Kennion gazelle, eastern jebeer gazelle or Baluchistan gazelle (G. b. fuscifrons) (Blanford, 1873) – occurs in eastern Iran, (southeast and along the Makran coast, Sistan and Baluchistan) southern Afghanistan, Pakistan, Balochistan Province to Sindh and northwestern India, Rajasthan, also the darkest subspecies.
Bushehr gazelle (G. b. karamii) (Groves, 1993) – ranges in northeastern Iran, restricted near Bushehr, also the smallest subspecies.
Jebeer gazelle, western jebeer gazelle or Shikari gazelle (G. b. shikarii) (Groves, 1993) – Lives in northeastern Iran, north and west-central districts (Touran, west to Tehran and southwest to Shiraz County and beyond), also the palest subspecies.
Salt Range gazelle (G. b. salinarum) (Groves, 2003) – ranges in Pakistan, Punjab region and east as far as Delhi, Indian Punjab, Haryana in northwest India, salt range.