|
 |
Home :: Projects :: Legal Training
|
Wildlife Law Enforcement Training Workshops
WPSI’s
Wildlife Law Enforcement Workshops are highly interactive sessions
where important enforcement and legal information is discussed in an
open forum. WPSI’s workshops do not lecture to the audience; they are
successful because they depend on the active participation of everyone
involved. The workshops are site specific and the aim is to share
information, learn from participants' experiences, and provide
assistance that will enable them to become more effective in combating
wildlife crime.
Our Approach
Each
workshop begins with an illustrated talk providing an overview of the
illegal wildlife trade. This includes information on methods employed
by poachers and traders, practical tips on the identification of
species, and ways of identifying fake products. The importance of
building an effective information network to identify wildlife
criminals is also stressed.
This is followed by a legal session
that is conducted by a WPSI lawyer. The level of knowledge of the
participants of The Wild Life (Protection) Act is first assessed to
identify areas of weakness that need to be addressed. Important
sections of the Act are then explained, and specific cases that the
participants bring up are discussed. WPSI’s team also stresses the need
to build strong cases based on thorough investigations and to have
complete and accurate paperwork; in other words, cases that are well
prepared most often lead to convictions. At the end of the workshops,
practical exercises are conducted where participants are given an
example situation for which they need to assess what kind of documents
should be prepared and what evidence needs to monitored etc. At some
workshops, enforcement personnel conduct refresher courses on the
handling and management of firearms.
As a result of this
approach, the workshops have proved to be extremely effective. They
have gained a strong reputation for being practical and interactive,
and there has been a clear improvement in the performance of
enforcement agencies involved. We now receive requests to conduct
workshops throughout India. We taken on those that are in most urgent
need of training, and those that are likely to use the knowledge and
skills provided most effectively.
Copies of The Wild Life
(Protection) Act and other resource material is distributed to the
workshop participants. A WPSI manual on wildlife crimes has also been
given to every senior police officer in India by the country’s premier
enforcement agency, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
Current Status
In
collaboration with state governments, tiger reserve managements and
enforcement authorities, since 2000, WPSI has hosted nearly 190
wildlife enforcement workshops and provided training to about 7,800
forest, police and customs officers in 17 states throughout India.
WPSI’s Director Central India conducts workshops in the central Indian
states of Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh to assist with effective
anti-poaching and wildlife law enforcement.
Workshops have been
held at Hyderabad (Andhra Pradesh), Kaziranga National Park (Assam),
T.M. Bhagalpur University (Bihar), Raipur (Chhattisgarh), Central
Bureau of Investigation (Delhi), Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar (Gujarat),
Srinagar (Jammu and Kashmir), Bhadra Tiger Reserve, Bandipur Tiger
Reserve, Dandeli Tiger Reserve and Shimoga (Karnataka),
Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala), Kanha Tiger Reserve, Pench Tiger
Reserve, Panna Tiger Reserve, Satpura Tiger Reserve, Bandhavgarh Tiger
Reserve, Bhopal, Jabalpur, Mandla, Guna, Seoni, Katni, Balaghat,
Hoshangabad, Chhindwara, Shahdol, Betul, Harda, Obaidullaganj, Raisen,
Vidisha, Parasiya, Anuppur, Kundam and Dindori (Madhya Pradesh), Tadoba
Tiger Reserve, Satpura Tiger Reserve, Nagpur, Melghat Tiger Reserve,
Chandrapur, Bramhapuri, West Chanda, Sakoli, Wardha, Chikhaldara,
Warsa, Alapalli, Bor and Gondia (Maharashtra), Bhubaneshwar (Orissa),
Punjab Police Training Academy (Punjab), Ranthambhore Tiger Reserve and
Jaipur (Rajasthan), Ramanathapuram (Tamil Nadu),Corbett Tiger Reserve,
Dehradun, Dudhwa Tiger Reserve (Uttar Pradesh), Kalagarh, Nainital,
Nanda Devi National Park and Joshimath (Uttarakhand) and Sundarban
Tiger Reserve (West Bengal).
In many of these places more than
one workshop has been held over the past few years. Workshops have also
been held in government training institutions throughout the country.
|
|
|
Untitled Document
|
