Aaranyak, partnered with the Meghalaya Forest department and WCCB, to sensitize the local communities and raise awareness on wildlife crimes in Northeast India, conducted a programme with Village Council Members in Meghalaya.

Aaranyak is a prominent biodiversity conservation organisation of Northeast India.

The two-day programme was organised on December 8-9, 2021 at Shillong and Nongpoh respectively, where villagers and village headmen of more than 20 village councils participated.

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“The CWLW, Meghalaya, Sahay inaugurated the programme in Shillong, which was also attended by Anu James, DFO, East Khasi Hills and the Range Officers of Shillong and Nongpoh,” Aaranyak said in a statement.

The programme was led by Jawaharlal Baro, Assistant Director of WCCB, Sub-regional office.

Baro apprised the participants of the purpose of the programme and also spoke about the importance of
WCCB as an agency to control wildlife crime.

Hiten Bora, Intelligence Assistance, WCCB spoke about the importance of village council members and their roles in minimizing wildlife crime. He mentioned about the different laws and sections under WLPA (1972).

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The programme was also attended by Dr. Bibhab Kr. Talukdar, SG & CEO of Aaranyak and Dr. Jimmy Borah, senior manager, Legal and Advocacy Division (LAD), Aaranyak.

Dr. Talukdar interacted with forest department officials and also spoke about the illegal wildlife trade in the region with a focus on charismatic species, the statement said.

He mentioned how species like rhinos are crucial to maintain the ecological balance for a sustained living earth.

Dr. Borah spoke on the global perspective of wildlife crime narrowing down to crimes in the region and ways to manage those.

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The villagers interacted well with the resource persons and asked how to minimize conflicts in village areas.

They also said that they would be happy to share any relevant information with authorities to help curb any
wildlife crime in the region.