Red Sanders removed from CITES Review of Significant Trade: Bhupendra Yadav

India has been removed from the CITES's Review of Significant Trade (RST) for Red Sanders, announced Union Environment Minister Bhupendra Yadav on Monday adding that the development is a major boost for the farmers who grow the species.

India has been under the Review of Significant Trade (RST) process for Red Sanders since 2004.

The CITES RST process enables disciplinary action in the form of trade suspensions directed at countries that do not meet their obligations.

In a post on X, Yadav said, "Based on our compliance and reporting, India has been removed from the Review of Significant Trade for Red Sanders. The development is a major boost for the farmers who grow Red Sanders."

The 77th meeting of the Standing Committee of Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) was held in Geneva, Switzerland from 6th to 10th November 2023. India has been a Party to the CITES since 1976.

A delegation led by SP Yadav, Additional Director General of Forests (PT) and CITES Management Authority-India, participated in the 77th Standing Committee meeting.

The Red Sanders (Pterocarpus santalinus) is a high-market value tree, endemic to a few districts in Andhra Pradesh.

The species is listed as Appendix II under CITES since 1994. The species has been subjected to threats of illegal harvesting and smuggling leading to their depletion from natural forest. However, red sander wood sourced from artificial propagation (plantations) comprises a major part of legal export.

The Red Sanders species has been listed for the Review of Significant Trade (RST) process more or less since 2004.

This is a process through which the CITES Standing Committee places increased scrutiny on the exports of a species from a country to determine if the Convention is being properly implemented. In the past, it has even led to a recommendation to suspend trade with India. The environment ministry said that India has been updating the CITES Secretariat on the status of exports of red sanders from India. India had also conducted Non-Detrimental Findings for the species and had finalized a zero quota for the export of Red sanders from the wild.

"Continuous pursuance on the matter with the CITES Secretariat, Standing Committee and Plants Committee has led the Standing Committee in this (77th) meeting to decide on removing Red sanders from the RST process. The removal of Pterocarpus santalinus from the RST process from India was unconditional," the ministry said.

This action will help the farmers growing Red Sanders to increase their income through the cultivation and export of Red Sanders from the plantations, the ministry highlighted.