Rise in wildlife offences in Telangana

Hyderabad: According to a recent data by the NCRB, there is a hike in environmental offences in Telangana from 10 cases in 2014 to 22 cases in 2016. Of this, 17 cases have been booked under the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972. 

Although strict measures were taken to ensure preservation of wildlife, the increase in the number of cases has taken aback forest officials. AP has a higher number of 46 environmental offences. However, only three cases are listed under the Wildlife Protection Act. The rest of the cases are booked under the Forest Act, 1927, in which TS has fared well as opposed to the other southern states. 

Dr Manoranjan Bhanja, PCCF, said, “We have started a new strategy to ensure protection of the wildlife. A lot of villagers set up electric wires to prevent wild boars from entering agricultural land. However, a tiger was recently killed when it got stuck in it. We will raise awareness about the Wildlife Protection Act. We will also take help from the police to visit villages. If we nab the culprits and book them, it will raise more awareness about the issue which is crucial.”

Security measures have been tightened around the tiger reserves. As the tiger counting census is set to begin in January, officials hope that a higher number can be spotted. Forest officials also said that despite the less number of cases booked under the Forest Act, 1927, they were going to ensure that illegal timber smuggling comes to an end. 

A senior forest official said, “We are acting on any complaint regarding illegal timber. Strict instructions have been given to DFOs regarding it.”Karnataka stands highest among the south states with over 109 cases booked under the Forest Act. Meanwhile, no cases have been registered under the Prevention and Control of Pollution Act in Telangana in 2016. PCB officials said that as many odour samples could not be traced back to industries.