Consider the following statements in respect to Trade Related Analysis of Fauna and Flora in Commerce (TRAFFIC): Which of the above statements is/are correct?

Answer: (b) 2 only

TRAFFIC is a WWF–IUCN NGO whose mission is sustainable wildlife trade.

Statement by statement

1. ✗ WRONG TRAFFIC is a non-governmental network set up by WWF and IUCN — not a UNEP bureau.

2. ✓ CORRECT Its mission is to make sure wildlife trade does not threaten nature.

The idea

Three different players watch the wildlife trade. CITES is a treaty between governments and it is binding. TRAFFIC is a non-governmental network that collects data on the trade and alerts governments. A national enforcement agency (in India, the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau) makes the arrests.

A species is traded across borders → TRAFFIC studies seizures, markets and routes → Its data goes to CITES and to governments → CITES parties list the species in an Appendix → National agencies enforce the rule

The trap

Wildlife trade sounds like CITES/UNEP territory. TRAFFIC is an NGO.

Elimination technique

Statement 1 says a body is “a bureau under” a UN agency. In Environment PYQs such parentage claims are usually false. Doubt it first and options (a) and (c) go.

Also know

TRAFFIC was set up in 1976 by IUCN and WWF, with its head office in Cambridge, UK. In India it works with WWF-India from New Delhi. The CITES secretariat is the one that UNEP administers (Geneva). India’s Wildlife Crime Control Bureau is a statutory body created by the 2006 amendment to the Wild Life (Protection) Act.