Sunday, Jun 29, 2003
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By Our Staff Correspondent
Domestic ivory trade continues to be widespread, but has now largely shifted underground, hindering efforts of the law enforcement agencies to check its smuggling. A report "An Assessment of the Domestic Ivory Carving Industry and Trade Controls in India,'' released by the WWF-India and TRAFFIC, has said that hundreds of craftsmen were still using ivory in India, because of demand from both domestic and international markets and high profits. Calling upon the authorities to take immediate action to enforce the ban, which also extends to prohibition of any trade in pre-ban ivory stocks, the WWF-India suggests that there is an urgent need for more rigorous enforcement of existing laws against elephant poaching and ivory trade. The study found that both Indian and foreign nationals purchased ivory artefacts such as carvings, jewellery and seals produced in India. It also links the demand to the use of ivory artefacts in traditional ceremonies. The most active production and collection areas for raw ivory are Orissa and Uttar Pradesh and the most active markets for worked ivory are Murshidabad, Jaipur and Udaipur. Nepal stands out as an international destination for Indian ivory carvings. According to the study, the four main sources for raw ivory are Asian elephants poached in India, domesticated elephants, smuggled ivory and existing ivory stocks in India. Between 1996 and 2001, an annual average of at least 270 kgs of raw ivory was seized in India, indicating that the national law enforcement efforts were meeting with some success. However, the seizures also indicated a large continuing domestic market. The study points out that the existence of a potent domestic ivory market was especially worrying in the face of increasing global trend in ivory smuggling. India, together with Kenya, has consistently opposed moves to reopen limited conditional ivory trade markets. Located in Africa and Asia, these domestic markets have become active since 1996 and account for the greatest volume of ivory being seized throughout the world.
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