RTI reveals details of existing vacancies at DWC

A recent RTI request from this newspaper revealed that 150 wildlife rangers and 384 wildlife guards exist at the Department of Wildlife Conservation. FILE PHOTO

Vacancies for 150 wildlife rangers and 384 wildlife guards currently exist at the Department of Wildlife Conservation (DWC). These details were revealed in response to a Right to Information request filed by the Daily Mirror to inquire about existing vacancies at the Department.  

Details of vacancies are as follows: 

The Daily Mirror also learned that the Department bears a cost of approximately Rs. 20 million to conduct treatments on injured elephants and other species of wildlife annually. 

Responding to a query on challenges in treating injured elephants, DWC, Director – Health, Dr. Tharaka Prasad, said that treating elephants in the wild is a challenging task. “If we receive information about an injured elephant, then we would act upon it immediately. Gunshot injuries require immediate attention and treatment, but due to practical difficulties, sometimes it is a challenge to respond immediately. What we have observed is that the trap gun is the most lethal weapon. Wounds often get infected with bacteria, and it is quite a stressful experience for elephants. We have limited veterinary surgeons to attend to this task,” he added. 

Dr. Prasad further said that treatments depend on blood samples. “Elephants are given antibiotics and painkillers. There is a procedure to obtain tranquillisers and other medical requirements. But the DWC so far has had no issue in procuring medical supplies. It’s just that we lack resources to respond immediately, and it could perhaps be rectified soon,” he further said. 

However, since the government hadn’t called for new recruitments, the long list of vacancies is pending. Conservationists have urged the government to follow scientific approaches to mitigate HEC and related human-wildlife conflicts.