Wildlife Crime Control Bureau

Wildlife Crime Control Bureau

Subject – Environment

Context – Protecting wildlife: 2,054 cases registered in three years

Concept –

• Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB) is a statutory body established by the Government of India under the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change to combat organised wildlife crime.
• The Wild Life (Protection) Amendment Act, 2006 provisions came in to force on 4 September 2006. It became operational in the year 2008.
• WCCB won the prestigious 2010 Clark R. Bavin Wildlife Law Enforcement Awards for its outstanding work on wildlife law enforcement in the country.
• UNEP has also awarded WCCB with Asia Environment Enforcement Award, 2018.
• WCCB is also partnering with United Nations University and CIESIN-Earth Institute at Columbia University through the Wildlife Enforcement Monitoring System Initiative.
• The Bureau has its headquarters in New Delhi.
• Wildlife Crime Control Bureau is designated nodal agency for CITES related enforcement.
• Under the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972, WCCB is mandated to
  • collect and collate intelligence related to organized wildlife crime;
  • disseminate the same to State and other enforcement agencies so as to apprehend the criminals;
  • to establish a centralized wildlife crime data bank;
  • co-ordinate actions by various agencies in connection with the enforcement of the provisions of the Act;
  • assist international organizations & foreign authorities to facilitate wildlife crime control;
  • capacity building of the wildlife crime enforcement agencies;
  • assist State Governments to ensure success in prosecutions related to wildlife crimes; and
  • advise the Government of India on issues relating to wildlife crimes.
• It also assists and advises the customs authorities in inspection of the consignments of flora & fauna as per the provisions of the Wild Life Protection Act, Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) and Export Import (EXIM) Policy governing such an item.

Some of the operations conducted by WCCB –

• Operation “Save Kurma” from 2016-2017 to focus on the poaching, transportation and illegal trade of live turtles and tortoises.
• “Operation Turtshield-I” from 2019-2020 and “Operation Turtshield-II” (2020-2021) was taken up to tackle the illegal trade of live turtles.
• “Operation Softgold” was undertaken from 2018-2019 to tackle illegal trade in Shahtoosh shawls (made from Chiru wool).