PIB TrackerDRI busts wildlife-trafficking networks, seizing 440 animals and 15 kg of ivory in pan-India raids
In intelligence-led operations across India, the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence seized 440 endangered animals and about 15 kg of elephant ivory and arrested 33 people — including a first-of-its-kind joint DRI–CBI bust of an interstate syndicate — enforcing the Wildlife Protection Act and CITES.
What happened
- The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) seized 440 endangered animals and about 15 kg of ivory in pan-India operations and arrested 33 persons.
- Near Sujangarh (Rajasthan), it seized about 11 kg of elephant ivory; the ivory and four arrested persons were handed to the Forest Department.
- The Indian elephant is on Schedule I of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, which prohibits trade in elephants and their derivatives.
- Commercial ivory trade is prohibited in line with India's CITES obligations (import/export banned under the Foreign Trade Policy).
- A first-of-its-kind joint DRI–CBI operation busted an interstate syndicate across Maharashtra and West Bengal.
For Prelims
- DRI: The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence — the apex anti-smuggling intelligence and enforcement agency under the CBIC (Finance Ministry); also tackles wildlife smuggling.
- Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972: India's core wildlife law; Schedule I gives the highest protection (e.g. tiger, elephant) with the strictest penalties.
- CITES: The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species — regulates/bans cross-border trade in listed species; the African/Asian elephant ivory trade is banned.
- Indian elephant: Elephas maximus — Schedule I, India's National Heritage Animal; trade in ivory is fully prohibited.
- Wildlife crime: A form of transnational organised crime; enforcement involves DRI, Customs, the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB) and Forest Departments.
- WCCB: The Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (Environment Ministry) — the nodal body coordinating action against organised wildlife crime.
For UPSC: Use this for wildlife crime and conservation enforcement — the DRI/WCCB/CITES architecture against transnational trafficking, and the Wildlife Protection Act's Schedule I. Anchor CITES, the ivory ban, the elephant as National Heritage Animal, and wildlife crime as organised, cross-border crime needing inter-agency coordination.
What it is NOT: This is an enforcement action (seizures and arrests), not a policy change. The animals/ivory were handed to Forest Departments for action under the Wildlife Protection Act; DRI's role is interdiction, not prosecution of wildlife offences per se.
For Mains
Syllabus: GS3.14 · GS3.19 · Linkage L2
Anchor
Combating wildlife crime — inter-agency enforcement against transnational trafficking to protect endangered species.
Substantiation (data)
DRI pan-India operations: 440 animals and ~15 kg ivory seized, 33 arrested; ~11 kg ivory near Sujangarh; first-of-its-kind DRI–CBI joint bust; enforced under the Wildlife Protection Act 1972 and CITES.
Exemplification
Ivory seizures (Sujangarh, Mysuru, Howrah), Schedule I protection and CITES ban as the legal-enforcement framework; DRI–CBI–Forest coordination.
Problematisation
Wildlife trafficking is organised, transnational and demand-driven; porous borders, weak prosecution and high profits sustain it.
Way-forward
Strengthen DRI/WCCB coordination and intelligence, speed prosecutions, curb demand, and deepen international (CITES) cooperation.
Position
India's stance: zero tolerance for wildlife crime, backed by the Wildlife Protection Act and CITES obligations.
Deploys into: Conservation and biodiversity (GS3.14 — endangered species, ivory) · security challenges of organised and transnational crime (GS3.19 — wildlife trafficking) · the Wildlife Protection Act 1972, CITES, DRI/WCCB and inter-agency enforcement.
Ministry of Finance · 2026-07-13 · PRID 2284262 · PIB source ↗