In a move that will make wood poachers think twice before felling a tree in a protected reserve, for the first time in the country, Madhya Pradesh’s Nauradehi Wildlife Sanctuary has started collecting DNA samples of standing trees, stumps and logs. This smart use of technology will not only discourage wood poachers from felling trees in reserved forests, but also fix responsibility of conniving officials.
“The work of collecting samples from standing trees, logs and stumps has already begun. We’ve started with DNA samples of teak, saja and sandalwood as they are more valuable and targeted by wood smugglers, but we’ll gradually cover all trees in a phased manner”.
The samples will be sent to State Forest Research Institute (SFRI) Jabalpur, where DNA will be extracted. Then, a DNA data bank of all trees will be prepared and the samples preserved.
Wood mapping has been used in the United States and elsewhere in the world to identify and prosecute wood smugglers with success.
Read more of this in a report by Anupam Pateriya published in Hindustan Times...
