New Delhi, July 14: Government has ordered a probe into the recent death of 75 blackbucks in a Rajasthan sanctuary due to heavy rainfall, Environment and Forests Minister Jairam Ramesh informed Rajya Sabha today.
“I did not know about this incident. I accept that I should have been careful. I have asked for a detailed report from Wildlife Institute of India (WII) as to why Tal Chhaper sanctuary authorities failed to cope with the situation,” he said during Question Hour.
The animals had died in the sanctuary in Churu district due to shock caused by stormy rains with heavy hailstorms in May, Ramesh said.
“The sanctuary authorities were not prepared to handle such a situation … we were caught napping and did not have a plan to counter it and protect the blackbucks,” he said.
To a suggestion by senior Congress member Motilal Vora that Centre should not limit its role to just giving funds to state governments, Ramesh said the government has taken some concrete steps for protecting rare animals.
Referring to penalties provided in anti-poaching laws, he said the ministry was contemplating a proposal to amend the Wildlife Amendment Act 1972 for making it more stringent and setting up of a Green Tribunal for faster disposal of poaching cases.
He also informed the House that the special investigation team that probed into the vanishing of tigers from Panna sanctuary in Madhya Pradesh has given its report to the Centre.
–Agencies
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