Gangster Vikas Dubey Shot Dead Trying To Escape After Accident: Cops, National : Today Indya

SILVER LINING IN TIGERS' STORY

History & Classics

NDTV

Tigers are one of the mightiest animals and have fascinated mankind since forever. They have inspired literature, myths, legends, folklore, arts and films. However, man being the selfish specie he is brought misery to the life of these wonderful creatures. Tiger population has dwindled around the world due to several natural and man-made factors. Sadly, it was not until the 21st century that governments across the world began to realize how serious an issue it was and took steps in that direction. Now, many countries where the tiger species are still found are taking serious steps towards its conservation. Here are a few facts that will tell you the reduced condition of these mighty animals, but also show you that there is still a ray of hope.

1. Today, there are five subspecies of tiger: Bengal, South China, Indochinese, Sumatran and Siberian with three others already extinct – Caspian, Bali and Javan.

2. In 2016, wildlife conservation group at WWF declared that world's count of wild tigers has risen for the first time in a century.

3. India's conservation efforts have brought the tiger population up by 30 percent

Tiger population is dwindling everywhere in the world, but for India. Latest tiger census states that the tiger population is up by 30 percent in India.

4. India is home to 70 percent of the world’s tigers. It is one of the only places in the world where the number of tiger individuals is actually rising.

5. In 2008, the tiger population in India was down to merely 1,411. Since then, the numbers have incredibly risen to a substantial 2,226 in 2014.

6. Government is taking initiative to relocate people near forest areas for tiger conservation

Due to poaching, logging and other such factors, the tiger species is one the most endangered species.

7. Funds are being raised to prevent and cure diseases in tigers

Apart from several man-made factors, natural factors such as diseases, prey-depletion, loss of genetic diversity is causing the tiger population to decrease world-wide.

8. Laws have been made stricter and people have been made aware against killing tigers

Illegal global trade is the largest threat looming over tigers. Approximate figures, prevalent in 2006, show that tigers were killed for just Rs. 5,000 in India by gullible villagers, but were sold in international market for a hefty price of up to $50,000 by big traders, middlemen and smugglers.

9. Hunting of tigers has been banned worldwide.

Several countries are taking serious efforts in tiger conservation. Russia has the second-largest tiger population after India with 433 tigers and aims to double it by 2020.

We hope tigers are eventually restored to their former glory!

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The saga of Vikas Dubey | HT Editorial

National

Hindustan Times

Let his arrest be the beginning, not the end of the story

Vikas Dubey — who led an attack on police officials, killing eight and injuring another seven, when they had gone to nab him in a Kanpur village last week — has finally been arrested. His story, and the story of the search for him, is a tale of the corrosive political culture of Uttar Pradesh, the mockery of the rule of law in much of the Indian hinterland, and the close — and ever deepening interlinkages — between politics and crime.

The fact that Dubey has got away for so long is a reflection of the manner in which the political and administrative machine has worked in many parts of India. As the political scientist Milan Vaishnav has persuasively argued, those with criminal antecedents have the finances to enter the political fray, ensuring supply; their reputation as those who can “deliver” to constituents, in the backdrop of a patronage based political system, enhances the demand for them. Dubey clearly had close political links — and must have performed useful services for politicians — which ensured that he was protected. But how can a political dispensation protect a criminal? That is where the broken law and order machinery comes in. Till there are police reforms in India — ensuring autonomy to the police force, and insulating them from political pressures — local authorities will seek their own slice of the cake and be a part of this nexus. Regimes will change, but that will only change the nature, and in UP’s case, the caste-profile of criminals — crime will persist.

The general consensus is that Dubey went too far this time — and no political regime can now protect him without political costs. He must, indeed, be brought to justice for the long and heinous list of crimes he has allegedly committed. But that cannot be the end of the story. His arrest must mark the beginning of a broader investigation into the trend of gang lords thriving with impunity, trigger a much needed process to change electoral incentives and tackle the criminalisation of politics, lead to the creation of a criminal justice system which can act independent of partisan pressures, and bring about a qualitative change in the political-security environment of UP. That will be true justice for the citizens in the state.

Article Original Source : https://www.hindustantimes.com/editorials/the-saga-of-vikas-dubey-ht-editor...