TRAFFIC South Asia

Region: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Maldives, Pakistan and Sri Lanka
Office: India
Founded: 1991
1st Director: Ashok Kumar
Current Director of TRAFFIC India: Samir Sinha
Newsletter: TRAFFIC Post
Factsheet about TRAFFIC India (232 KB)
Contact Details

Regional overview
South Asia is one of the most populous and biodiverse regions in the world. Traditionally, the region is a key supplier and consumer of wildlife, wildlife parts and products. Animal species often found in trade include Tiger, Asian elephant, one-horned rhinoceros, leopard, musk deer, bears, turtles/tortoises, snakes and falcons. Plant species potentially threatened by trade include agarwood, orchids, and several valuable medicinal and aromatic plants.

Office history and key wildlife trade decisions in the region
In 1991, TRAFFIC established its India office hosted by WWF-India. After a brief absence from 2002, when TRAFFIC operations in South Asia were managed directly from TRAFFIC International, TRAFFIC reopened its Indian office in 2006, once again hosted by WWF-India.

1991: published a study into the use of wild animal parts in traditional medicines (A Note on the use of wild animal organs in Tibetan medicines)
1992: investigated the ivory trade (White gold, the ivory trade: A briefing document) and fur trade in Nepal (Fur trade in Kathmandu: Implications for India)
1993: surveyed the Indian turtle trade (Turtle trade in India: A study of freshwater turtles) and attitudes towards sustainable wildlife trade (Sustainable use of wildlife: Views and perspectives)
1994: published an invesigation of the Agarwood trade (Trade in Agarwood) and a guide for enforcement officers (Wildlife trade: A handbook for enforcement staff)
1996: published an identification guide to mammals and derivatives in trade in India (Identification manual for Indian wildlife—species and derivatives in trade)
1997: investigated the bird trade in India (Live bird trade in northern India), the ivory, fur and sanke skin trades in India (Ban on ivory, fur and snake skin trade in India), and the shark trade in India (Trade in sharks and shark products in India: A preliminary survey)
1998: examined the birds’ nest trade in India (The impact of nest collection on the Edible-nest Swiftlet Collocalia fuciphaga in the Andaman & Nicobar Islands)
2000: published extensive research into medicinal plant and similar trades in India (CITES-listed medicinal plants of India: An identification manual) (Regulation of collection, transit and trade of medicinal plants and other non-timber forest products in India) (Cultivation of medicinal plants in India)
2001: published a report on India’s Whale Shark fishery (Gentle Giants of the sea: India's Whale Shark fishery)
2007: signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the South Asian Co-operative Environment Programme (SACEP) to build a regional network to ensure the sustainability of legal wildlife trade and tackle wildlife crime in South Asia