Expert body needed on Man-Animal Conflict: Panel

What is the News?

The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Environment, Forests and Climate Change has submitted its report on the proposed Wildlife (Protection) Amendment Bill, 2021. The Bill seeks to amend the Wildlife Protection Act,1972.

What are the suggestions given by the committee?

Standing Committee of the State Board for Wild Life(SBWL) 

The Bill provides for the creation of the Standing Committee of the State Board for WildLife (SBWL) to make the functioning of the SBWL more purposive.

However, experts have raised concerns that such a body would be packed with official members, exercise all powers of the SBWL and take decisions independent of the SBWL itself.

Suggestion: The committee should have at least one-third of the non-official members of the SBWL, at least three institutional members and the Director of the Wildlife Institute of India or his/ her nominee.

On Human-Animal Conflict

The Bill did not address the issue of Human-Animal Conflict(HAC)

However, the committee has recommended the formation of a Human-Animal Conflict(HAC) Advisory Committee to tackle growing instances of human-animal conflict. This committee is to be headed by the Chief Wildlife Warden.

The HAC Advisory committee can make effective site-specific plans/ mitigation strategies including recommendations on changing cropping patterns and taking critical decisions at short notice.

Source: This post is based on the article “Expert body needed on Man-Animal Conflict: Panel” published in The Hindu on 22nd April 2022.