By IANS
New Delhi : India will soon set up a Wildlife Crime Control Bureau to conserve "national heritage" in the face of rising incidents of poaching and trade in wildlife products.
The government has decided to set up a Wildlife Crime Control Bureau with its headquarters in Delhi and four regional and three sub-regional offices, Finance Minister P. Chidambaram told reporters after a cabinet meeting Thursday presided over by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
The cabinet approved a proposal of the ministry of environment and forests to constitute a 'Tiger and Other Endangered Species Crime Control Bureau' ('Wildlife Crime Control Bureau').
The proposed bureau will also have a post of additional director in the rank of inspector general of police. A proposal for the commensurate additional staff has also been approved in principle, said the minister.
"The constitution of this multidisciplinary bureau will help in conserving the natural heritage of the country by establishing a credible database on wildlife items and trade, and helping to convict criminals and their accomplices at national and international levels," he said.
"It will facilitate training to the field staff in intelligence gathering, crime detection and prosecution. It will also strengthen the ongoing efforts for control of poaching and illegal trade," he added.