The Forest Department will take steps to make public the death of wild animals due to various causes, on its website https://aranya.gov.in
Details of the wildlife deaths will be made public as and when the authorities confirm the news and establish the cause. A directive to this effect has been issued by the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife) consequent to an appeal made by environmental activist Giridhar Kulkarni.
The circular also states that the post-mortem report too should be uploaded on the department website within 24 hours after the completion of the exercise. This will be akin to the mortality data maintained by the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) about the tiger deaths from across the country and is brought to public domain through its website.
The communique points out that the elephant task force, constituted by the High Court of Karnataka, had also stated that ‘’in all cases of elephant mortality, we recommend that, as is being done now by the NTCA, all post-mortem examinations be held with external observers and the Karnataka Forest Department create a separate section on its website on which to record and display the post-mortem report’’.
Besides, the office of the PCCF (Wildlife) too had issued a similar communique in September 2013 and it is yet to be implemented. Hence the communique issued to the information technology and communication wing of the Forest Department directs that steps be taken to comply with the directives at the earliest.
