27 August 2019


In a boost to India’s bid to protect endangered animal species, the United Nations Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) in Geneva on Monday banned illegal international trade of Indian star tortoise, smooth-coated otters and Asian small-clawed otters.

These proposals had been put forth by India in December 2018 for consideration at the 18th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (CoP18) to the convention. The plan received a majority acceptance from world leaders.

Apart from the ban on commercial trade for some species, Tokay gecko and 18 shark species were upgraded to a higher protection level.

“It has been a remarkable success for us with almost all of our proposals receiving consensus from member states,” said MS Negi, additional director general of forest (wildlife), Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC), who was present at the conference.

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