The future of the rest of India’s surviving forests, however, will still depend on the final shape and mandate of the tribal bill.

Postscript: Under the wildlife bill, the Wildlife Crime Bureau (WCB) will soon be constituted with a bunch of police and forest officials. It is not clear yet if WCB personnel will enjoy the powers of policemen, forest officials or both. It is crucial to clarify this because the two entities enjoy unique powers. For example, under Section 50-51 of the Forest Act, confessions made before a forest officer is cognisable in a court of law but a police officer requires the presence of a magistrate to record legally sustainable confessions. The power of a forest officer is very important in dealing with wildlife criminals operating in remote forest areas. At the same time, a forest officer doesn’t enjoy a number of privileges of a policeman. If the exclusive powers and privileges of the two services can be combined, it will help WCB personnel in their fight against some of the most cunning minds behind India’s multi-crore wildlife trade.