News Highlight
India has got rules for the export of timber-based products made of Shisham or North India Rosewood eased under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of wild fauna and flora (CITES).
Key Takeaway
- Relief for trade will apply to specific weight categories of timber-based furniture and handicrafts.
Shisham
- About
- Dalbergia sissoo is commonly known as Rosewood and Shisham and is a medium to large deciduous tree native to India.
- Distribution
- It is native to the foothills of the Himalayas.
- Features
- It can withstand average annual rainfall of up to 2,000 millimetres (79 in) and droughts of 3–4 months.
- Soils range from pure sand and gravel to rich alluvium of river banks; shisham can grow in slightly saline soils.
- Use
- It is used as firewood, timber, poles, posts, tool handles, fodder, erosion control, and windbreak.
- Oil is extracted from the seed, and tannin is from the bark.
- Conservation status
- Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).
CITES
- About
- The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) is an international agreement to which States and regional economic integration organisations adhere voluntarily.
- Foundation
- CITES was drafted as a result of a resolution adopted in 1963 at a meeting of members of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
- CITES entered into force in July 1975.
- Aim
- To ensure that international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten the survival of the species.
- Secretariat
- The CITES Secretariat is administered by UNEP (The United Nations Environment Programme) and is located in Geneva, Switzerland.
- Appendices
- The species covered by CITES are listed in three Appendices as per the degree of protection they need:
- Appendix I includes species threatened with extinction.
- Appendix II includes species not necessarily threatened with extinction but (where trade must be controlled).
- Appendix III contains species that are protected in at least one country which has asked other CITES parties for assistance in controlling the trade.
Content Source: Times of India