Guwahati: Vantara on Friday announced the full membership of its newly established Governing Council, which will oversee its conservation, rescue and compliance work and help set the organisation’s vision for the next five years and beyond.

The Council will also take the final decision on any future applications to import wild animals. It comprises five members and one ex officio member, bringing together experts in wildlife policy, law, institutional oversight, wildlife crime, human-wildlife conflict, zoo and aquarium standards, veterinary care, stakeholder engagement and community-based conservation.

John E. Scanlon AO, environmentalist and former Secretary-General of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), will serve as the independent Chair. His appointment was announced in August 2026.

The other members are Krishna Murari, former Judge of the Supreme Court of India and former Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court; Craig Hoover, Executive Vice President of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA); Subhash K. Malkhede, senior officer at the Indian Forest Service and former Chief Wildlife Warden of Karnataka; and Greta F. Iori, a conservation expert with experience in wildlife crime, human-wildlife coexistence, women’s leadership and community-based conservation across Africa.

Hoover will begin his term in January 2027 after completing his tenure with AZA.

Kushal Konwar Sarma, an Indian wildlife veterinarian and elephant specialist, will serve as an ex officio, non-voting member. He was formerly Professor and Head of the Department of Surgery and Radiology at the College of Veterinary Science, Guwahati.

The Council members will serve in an independent personal capacity, while Vantara employees cannot be voting members of the Council.

John Scanlon, Chair of the Governing Council, said: “The Governing Council has a central role to play in setting the future vision for Vantara and in ensuring it embeds recently announced changes into its daily operations. With these appointments, we are bringing in people with outstanding professional credentials, extensive experience, and exemplary personal credibility. It’s an exceptional team that blends deep expertise from within India and globally. We will work diligently together to make a lasting, transformative positive impact for wildlife conservation, and look forward to engaging with Vantara staff and the conservation community in our work.”

Vivaan Karani, CEO of Vantara, said: “I welcome the members of the Governing Council, who will play an instrumental role in setting our future vision and in ensuring that Vantara is held to the highest standards as we advance science-led conservation. The independent authority of the Council is central to our efforts to fully implement the commitments made in our letter to the Indian CITES Management Authority last month, and to ensuring Vantara’s decisions are subject to rigorous and independent oversight.”

The Governing Council is Vantara’s peak governing body and will supervise its conservation, rescue and rehabilitation work, compliance with Indian law, CITES and other international agreements, and help set its vision for the next five years and beyond.

As part of Vantara’s recently announced governance reforms, no application to import an animal will be made before June 5, 2027. Thereafter, commitments not to apply to import an animal in certain circumstances will apply, and no application may be advanced without the Council’s prior written approval following an internal due diligence process.

According to Vantara, the establishment of the Governing Council is part of its voluntary commitments to strengthen transparency, adhere to CITES and prioritise conservation in India.

The Council will review progress against Vantara’s letter to the Indian CITES Management Authority dated August 19, 2026, to ensure implementation of the commitments. The letter has been made available by Vantara.

The Council will be supported by the new CITES Due Diligence Committee, the Advisory Board, the Special Director and the Office of Compliance and Due Diligence.