GUWAHATI, Aug 8: The Assam government has recognised North East India’s only Wildlife Genetics Laboratory (WGL) for the purpose of assisting wildlife crime investigations and control through forensic evidence gathering using DNA sampling methods.
Biodiversity organisation Aaranyak’s Wildlife Genetics Laboratory has been recognised by the Assam government under Section 329 (4) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023, WGL Director Udayan Borthakur said on Friday.
Section 329 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023, deals with the admissibility of reports from certain scientific experts, recognised by the government, as evidence in legal proceedings.
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Assam Governor Laxman Prasad Acharya passed the order on August 4, following which the Special Chief Secretary of the Assam Environment, Forest and Climate Change Department issued the notification recognising both the laboratory and Borthakur under the relevant provision of the Act.
“We regard the government’s notification as a significant acknowledgement of our nearly two decades of work in this field and are grateful to the Assam government for entrusting us with this critical responsibility”, Borthakur said.
The notification will allow the lab and its biologist to function as scientific experts to support law enforcement agencies to gather evidence for forensic analysis in wildlife offences, that will facilitate increased conviction rates in the coming days.
Aaranyak Executive Director Bibhab Kumar Talukdar also thanked the state Forest department and other government authorities for bestowing faith and responsibilities to Wildlife Genetics facilities.
WGL, founded in 2008, is Northeast India’s only conservation genetics and wildlife DNA forensics facility.
Over the past decade, the lab has provided genetic analysis and on-ground DNA sampling support to 135 wildlife crime investigations by government authorities.
In addition to forensic work, the lab has conducted over two dozen conservation genetic research projects on threatened wildlife species in India and abroad. (PTI)
