{"id":32778,"date":"2023-02-18T06:23:55","date_gmt":"2023-02-18T00:53:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/?p=32778"},"modified":"2025-04-19T15:58:44","modified_gmt":"2025-04-19T10:28:44","slug":"pangolins-over-1000-poached-and-trafficked-in-india","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/pangolins-over-1000-poached-and-trafficked-in-india\/","title":{"rendered":"Pangolins: Over 1,000 poached and trafficked in India"},"content":{"rendered":"<h3><strong>What\u2019s in today\u2019s article?<\/strong><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Why in News?<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>What is TRAFFIC (Trade Records Analysis of Flora and Fauna in Commerce)?<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>What Exactly is an Indian Pangolin?<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>What Steps are Being Taken to Protect Pangolins?<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>News Summary Regarding Pangolins and TRAFFIC\u2019s Findings<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Why in News?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>On the eve of World Pangolin Day (Feb 18), a not-for-profit organisation &#8211; TRAFFIC, has reported that 1,203 pangolins have been found in illegal wildlife trade in India from 2018 to 2022.<\/li>\n<li>An earlier analysis of illegal pangolin trade in India by TRAFFIC in 2018 reported poaching of nearly 6,000 pangolins between 2009 and 2017.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><strong>What is TRAFFIC (Trade Records Analysis of Flora and Fauna in Commerce)?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Also known as the Wildlife Trade Monitoring Network, TRAFFIC is <strong>a global non-governmental organisation<\/strong> monitoring the trade in wild animals and plants with focus on biodiversity and sustainable development.<\/li>\n<li>It was originally created in <strong>1976 <\/strong>as a specialist group of the Species Survival Commission of the IUCN and evolved into a strategic alliance of the <strong>WWF and the IUCN.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>It also provides <strong>trade information and expert analysis<\/strong> to the decision-making process at <strong>CITES <\/strong>(such as through the Elephant Trade Information System) to ensure that international trade in wildlife remains at sustainable levels.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<h2><strong>What Exactly is an Indian Pangolin?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/lh4.googleusercontent.com\/29YK19-JHPLfG3he4WCp0fOM6F5lk8v8nnqZeWFzC-jvQoenfGuPWu3JYuGlGecwVa-cTirR1pKiKlk7vj-yfO_q1Qpb4apdma5uQcLa_u0HshoeXeJYS1zPDgFyjENa6_M17FMUBxqqmhOKT75gHg\" alt=\"\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Image Caption: Indian Pangolin (Key Facts)<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Also called thick-tailed pangolin and scaly anteater, it is a pangolin <strong>native to the Indian subcontinent<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li>Like other pangolins, it has <u>large-overlapping scales<\/u> (colour varies depending on the colour of the earth in its surroundings) on its body <strong>which act as armour<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li>An insectivore, it can also <strong>curl itself into a ball as self-defence against predators<\/strong> such as the tiger.<\/li>\n<li>It is <strong>nocturnal and found in various types of tropical forests<\/strong> as well as open land, grasslands and degraded habitats, including in close proximity to villages.<\/li>\n<li><strong>The species can adapt well to modified habitats<\/strong>, provided its ant and termite prey remains abundant.<\/li>\n<li>Indian Pangolin is <u>widely distributed in India<\/u>,<strong> except the arid region, high Himalayas and the North-East<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li>It can be found at an elevation up to 2500 m and also occurs in <strong>Bangladesh, Pakistan, Nepal and Sri Lanka.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>Other than regulating the population of insects, the pangolin is an \u2018<strong>ecosystem engineer\u2019<\/strong> that builds burrows that help circulate soil organic matter, increase soil moisture and aeration, and affect plant community succession.<\/li>\n<li>It is threatened by <strong>hunting for its meat<\/strong>, traditional <strong>medicine <\/strong>and <strong>illicit international trade<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><strong>What Steps are Being Taken to Protect Pangolins?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>TRAFFIC <\/strong>is mapping pangolin trade hubs, conduits, transportation, high poaching areas and drivers in relation to poaching and illegal trafficking of pangolins.<\/li>\n<li>In 2015, TRAFFIC, in partnership with WWF-India and Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB) launched <strong>a social media campaign to create awareness<\/strong> towards curbing illegal trade in pangolins.<\/li>\n<li>In 2020, the <strong>Madhya Pradesh<\/strong> forest department announced the first-ever successful <strong>radio-tagging<\/strong> of the Indian pangolin.<\/li>\n<li>In 2020, the <strong>Maharashtra <\/strong>forest department became the first state in India to have a <strong>dedicated action plan for conservation of pangolins.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Sahyadri Nisarga Mitra <\/strong>(Ratnagiri, Maharashtra, India) &#8211; an NGO, is involved in awareness and sensitisation activities for the local community in the identified pockets.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><strong>News Summary Regarding Pangolins and TRAFFIC\u2019s Findings<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Pangolins are among the <strong>most trafficked wild mammals globally<\/strong> and India is home to two species:\n<ul>\n<li><strong>The Indian Pangolin<\/strong> &#8211; found across the subcontinent and <strong>the Chinese Pangolin<\/strong> &#8211; found across a larger area in south Asia.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Bihar, West Bengal, and Assam<\/strong> see the presence of both.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Both species are included under India\u2019s <strong>Schedule I<\/strong> of the Wildlife Protection Act and are also in <strong>Appendix I <\/strong>of the CITES.<\/li>\n<li>The Indian Pangolin has been classified as <strong>\u2018Endangered\u2019 <\/strong>and the Chinese Pangolin as \u2018<strong>Critically Endangered<\/strong>\u2019 by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.<\/li>\n<li>The publication, titled \u2018<strong>India\u2019s Pangolins Buried in Illegal Wildlife Trade<\/strong>\u2019, has tracked 342 total incidents during this time period and 8 incidents of online trading were also recorded.<\/li>\n<li>Up to 24 States and one UT saw seizures of pangolins and their derivatives.\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Odisha reported the maximum number of incidents<\/strong>, with 154 pangolins in 74 seizures.<\/li>\n<li>It was followed by <strong>Maharashtra <\/strong>with 135 pangolins in 47 seizure incidents.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Up to 50% of seizures included live pangolins and 40% involved pangolin scales, <strong>poached mainly for international markets in China and southeast Asia<\/strong> for their scales, which are used as an ingredient in traditional medicines.\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Pangolin meat is also considered a delicacy<\/strong> and consumed for its alleged medicinal properties.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>There is an imperative need to focus on pangolins, strengthen their protection and conservation for their future survival.<\/li>\n<li>The publication calls for <strong>cooperation and collaboration<\/strong> for protection and conservation of the species, <strong>through DNA-based technologies and information sharing.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3><strong>Q1) How many species of Pangolin are found in India?<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>India is home to two species: The Indian Pangolin and the Chinese Pangolin. Both species are included under Schedule I of the Wildlife Protection Act and are also in Appendix I of the CITES. The Indian Pangolin has been classified as \u2018Endangered\u2019 and the Chinese Pangolin as \u2018Critically Endangered\u2019 by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.<\/p>\n<p><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<h3><strong>Q2) What innovative steps have been taken to save pangolins in India?<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Pangolins are among the most trafficked wild mammals globally. In 2020, the Madhya Pradesh forest department announced the first-ever successful radio-tagging of the Indian pangolin. In 2020, the Maharashtra forest department became the first state in India to have a dedicated action plan for conservation of pangolins.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><strong>Source:<\/strong>\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehindu.com\/sci-tech\/energy-and-environment\/over-1000-pangolins-trafficked-in-india-in-5-years\/article66520621.ece\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><u>Over 1,000 pangolins poached and trafficked in India between 2018 and 2022<\/u><\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.wwfindia.org\/about_wwf\/priority_species\/threatened_species\/indian_pangolin\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><u>WWF India<\/u><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>VIDEO:<\/strong>\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=7jLu2R3kH9w\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><u>https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=7jLu2R3kH9w<\/u><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Also called thick-tailed pangolin and scaly anteater, Indian pangolin is native to the Indian subcontinent.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":32779,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-32778","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-upsc-mains-current-affairs","8":"no-featured-image-padding"},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32778","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=32778"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32778\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/32779"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=32778"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=32778"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=32778"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}