The state government reconstituted the State Board for Wildlife on October 28, with Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay as chairperson. The board includes three MLAs, NGO representatives, and conservation experts. This body will advise the government on managing protected areas and balancing the needs of forest communities with wildlife conservation.
CHENNAI: The state government has reconstituted the State Board for Wildlife, with Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay as its chairperson and the Minister for Forests as vice-chairperson.
The reconstitution was notified through a GO issued by the Environment, Climate Change and Forests Department on October 28. The tenure of the non-official members of the previous board had lapsed, prompting the government to reconstitute the statutory body following a proposal from the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests and Chief Wildlife Warden.
The reconstituted board includes three MLAs — M Sudhakar (Katpadi), S Karthikeyan (Madurai East) and MR Pallavi (Thiru Vi Ka Nagar).
Representatives of three NGOs — Jose Louies of Wildlife Trust of India, TR Shankar Raman of Nature Conservation Foundation and Balaji Vedharajan of OMCAR Foundation — have also been included.
The board further has representatives from conservation and research institutions, including Bombay Natural History Society and Wildlife Institute of India.
Among the other members are conservationists and experts Yash Veer Bhatnagar, country representative, IUCN; R Suresh Kumar, scientist from WII, and C Sreekumar from TANUVAS.
The chief secretary will be a special invitee, while senior officials from various departments, including environment and forests, social justice, and fisheries, will serve as members.
The tenure of non-official members will be two years. The wildlife board will advise the government on the selection and management of protected areas, amendments to wildlife protection schedules and measures to balance the needs of tribal and other forest-dwelling communities with wildlife conservation.