Collaboration Between Poachers and Wildlife Protection Personnel is Intolerable!

The four poachers with remains of sambar and mouse deer they killed.

In southern India's Karnataka state, forest personnel from Chikkamagaluru district attempted to bust a poaching ring on Tuesday night when they checked a car with four men in it and discovered it to be filled with dismembered remains of sambar and mouse deer. The four men ranged from ages 18-63 and were identified as Deekshit of Kadabailu, Annappa Shetty and Harish of Mallandur, and Manjappa Shetty of Shivagoor. Forest officials stated that the men entered the Masakali forest area on the peripheries of Bhadra Tiger Reserve on Tuesday at around 10 pm to hunt sambar and mouse deer with a single-barrel gun. After killing their intended targets, the poachers loaded their kills in a car and were transporting them through the Honnahalla checkpoint when they were arrested. Upon being interrogated, the poachers revealed to the forest personnel that an honorary wildlife warden named Satish Gowda was supposedly involved in the poaching racket. The rangers learned that Gowda owned a plantation on the edge of the forest and was assigned to watch for poaching activities. However, the poachers were able to gain entry into the forest area after Gowda permitted them. The four poachers have been produced in court. Gowda, on the other hand, has been charged under the Wildlife Conservation Act for abetment of poaching and is on the run following the recent bust.

A tiger in Bhadra Tiger Reserve

There is nothing more shocking and frustrating than an individual or a group of individuals dedicated to protecting wildlife collaborating with poachers. I think this news highlights the flaws in the battle against poaching and other wildlife crimes in India. In this case, a high-ranking wildlife warden giving a nod to poachers to conduct their illegal activities. Another example took place in 2008 when Panna Tiger Reserve in Madhya Pradesh witnessed a crash in its tiger population and this was largely due to a collaboration between the forest personnel and poachers according to an internal report by the state forest department. Despite repeated requests from the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, the state government refused to establish a CBI probe into the matter. I strongly believe that when such people who are dedicated to wildlife protection are discovered to be collaborating with poachers, it should require considerable attention from government and judicial officials in order to ensure that aiding and abetting poaching would not be taken lightly. I hope that Satish Gowda will be made an example of this. In the meantime, it is essential to conduct efforts to track down this miscreant and bring him to justice.

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