There is evidence to suggest that some gangs involved in illegal wildlife trade have links with terrorist organisations, Environment Minister Jayanthi Natarajan said today.
"We must not forget that this (illegal wildlife trade) is big business. Wildlife is trafficked much like illegal drugs and arms and therefore by very nature it is difficult to obtain correct figures of value of this trade. It runs into hundreds and millions of dollars," she said.
Speaking at the valedictory ceremony of the five-day programme on Asian Big Cat Related Crimes organised by Interpol and CBI, she said in addition to elephants and tigers which are killed for ivory and skin and bones respectively, countless animals are being overexploited.
Corruption and weak judicial system allow the criminal network to exploit wildlife as it is a low risk and high return business for them, she said, adding that international illegal wildlife trade is estimated to be about USD 10 billion annually.
"The existence of illegal wildlife trade undermines efforts made by a country to protect their natural resources. Recent evidence points at, as CBI must be knowing, some of the networks are linked with terror groups," she said.
Natarajan assured the CBI that she would look into the concerns of the agency which has to take sanction from the state governments before probing wildlife crime cases which are spread across state borders.
Earlier speaking at the function, CBI Director Ranjit Sinha appreciated the role of the experts saying they possess rich experience in conservation of tiger and have been in the forefront of law enforcement in India and South Asia.
"I salute their commitment to the cause of preserving wildlife.
