Wildlife trafficking increasingly overlaps with customs and financial crime enforcement. Discuss the institutional mechanisms in India for combating this convergence, with reference to DRI's expanded mandate under the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972.

Q. Wildlife trafficking increasingly overlaps with customs and financial crime enforcement. Discuss the institutional mechanisms in India for combating this convergence, with reference to DRI's expanded mandate under the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972. (15 marks, 250-350 words)

Wildlife contraband today moves through the same airports, courier channels and hawala-backed syndicates as gold and narcotics. India's July 2026 crackdown — 440 endangered animals and about 15 kg of ivory seized with 33 arrests by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) [1] — shows that conservation now depends as much on revenue and financial-crime machinery as on forest guards.

Nature of the convergence - Transnational routing: interceptions on Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur and Colombo flights, and ivory idols at Howrah suspected of Bangladeshi origin, make India both source and transit hub [1]. - Organised syndicates: the Maharashtra–West Bengal network handling Slow Loris, Binturong, Star Tortoise and Egyptian Vulture was an interstate crime enterprise, booked for criminal conspiracy alongside wildlife offences [2].

Institutional mechanisms - DRI, under the Ministry of Finance, applies its customs-intelligence and interception capacity to wildlife consignments; in "Operation Kachchhap" it rescued 955 baby Gangetic turtles across Nagpur, Bhopal and Chennai [3], and in 2026 seized 11 kg ivory at Sujangarh, Rajasthan [1]. - Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB), a statutory body under MoEFCC, supplies species expertise and coordinates with INTERPOL in global operations [4]. - CBI's Economic Offences Branch brings financial-trail investigation, as in the joint CBI–DRI–WCCB action of 7–8 July 2026 [2]. - State Forest Departments retain legal custody of seized species and prosecution under the Act [1]. - Legal backbone: the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972, amended in 2022 to embed CITES obligations, with Section 49M rules notified on 28 February 2024 requiring registration of listed live specimens via PARIVESH 2.0 [5].

Persisting gaps include limited forensic species-identification at ports, thin proceeds-of-crime prosecution, and dependence on ad hoc rather than standing joint task forces.

The convergence is therefore best met by treating wildlife crime as economic crime: institutionalised DRI–WCCB–CBI task forces, routine invocation of money-laundering provisions, and port-level detection capacity. Aligning enforcement with CITES and SDG 15 would convert episodic seizures into durable deterrence.

(~325 words)

Sources: 1. DRI busts several wildlife trafficking networks across India (PIB, 13 July 2026) — 440 animals, ~15 kg ivory, 33 arrests; Sujangarh and Mysuru ivory seizures; international air routes; handover to Forest Departments 2. CBI-DRI Joint Action Busts Wildlife Trafficking Racket (PIB, July 2026) — Schedule-I species recovered; cases of 7–8 July 2026 under WLPA and criminal conspiracy; WCCB support 3. DRI saves 955 live baby Gangetic turtles — Operation "Kachchhap" (PIB) — multi-city rescue of 955 turtles, six apprehended 4. Parliament Question: Illegal Trading of Flora and Fauna (PIB) — WCCB's mandate, INTERPOL-linked operations, India's CITES membership 5. Notification of Rules framed under Section 49M of the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972 (PIB) — 2022 amendment in force from 1 April 2023; Section 49M rules of 28 February 2024; PARIVESH 2.0 registration