Yingkiong: Upper Siang deputy commissioner Shashvat Saurabh on Monday called upon the people of the district to stop the unabated practice of hunting in the name of tradition and culture and instead protect and conserve the wildlife for the future generations.
The DC made the appeal while addressing a meeting at the tourist complex here.
The meeting was convened by the deputy commissioner to discuss matters related to the practice of community hunting during the forthcoming Aran festival of the Adi community in the district.
DC Saurabh on the occasion also highlighted the rich biodiversity of the district and presented an elaborate audio-visual presentation to bring home the message to the public.
He also cautioned the people of various penal provisions under the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 and appealed to all to give up on gun culture.
Upper Siang SP Jummar Basar spoke on the need to regulate the use of arms and ammunition in the district and to do away with those not needed from a security perspective.
He highlighted that most of these weapons were being used for hunting purposes.
The divisional forest officer in his speech highlighted how wildlife was making a comeback, especially in the Karko area of Jengging sub-division since the people gave up hunting. Several panchayat leaders, gaon buras from Simong, Gette, Pugging and Gobuk villages and members of NGOs took part in the meeting.
