After visit to Vantara, global wildlife panel CITES recommends India pause animal imports.
About Vantara Zoo
•Vantara (meaning Star of the Forest) is a private, non-commercial wildlife rescue and rehabilitation centre.
•Located inside the Jamnagar Refinery Township, Gujarat.
•Mission: To provide care, conservation, and rehabilitation for injured, abandoned, and rescued animals.
•First-of-its-Kind in India: Largest privately managed facility for animal welfare and biodiversity rescue.
About CITES
•Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES)
•Originally conceived in 1963 at the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) meeting, it entered into force in 1975
•Voluntary international agreement between governments ensuring international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten their survival.
•Secretariat: Administered by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) at Geneva, Switzerland.
•IUCN provides scientific and technical services to the CITES Secretariat.
•Parties: 185 parties (States or regional economic organizations). India ratified in 1976.
•Although CITES is legally binding on the Parties, it does not take the place of national laws, rather each party implements it through its own domestic legislation
IAS-2026 - OPTIONAL / GEOGRAPHY / PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION / SOCIOLOGY / ANTHROPOLOGY / ORIENTATION ON 03 & 04-10-2025 
