The Madras High Court has directed the Tamil Nadu forest department to destroy the ivory in its possession only after taking photographs; videograph; measuring the height, weight and circumference of the tusks; and after retaining samples of each and every piece for conducting DNA tests, if necessary.
A special Division Bench of Justices N. Sathish Kumar and D. Bharatha Chakravarthy, constituted to hear cases related to forests and wildlife, issued the direction after Special Government Pleader (Forests) T. Seenivasan told the court that steps were afoot to destroy the seized ivory in accordance with law.
Referring to written instructions received from Principal Chief Conservator of Forests-cum-Chief Wildlife Warden Rakesh Kumar Dogra, the SGP told the court that the September 2024 news reports regarding one tonne of ivory having been stolen from the Arignar Anna Zoological Park at Vandalur were incorrect.
He said, only two tusks totally weighing one kilogram were stolen and that they were subsequently recovered. However, since the court insisted on destroying the seized ivory in order to prevent such incidents of theft, the forest department had begun the process under the Wild Life Disposal of Wild Animal Article Rules, 2023.
