Vinay Shukla
Moscow, Dec 6 (PTI) Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin today sought tougher sanctions for tiger poaching to preserve the royal beast, which was once at the point of extinction in Siberia.
Speaking at a conference organised by his United Russia party in the far eastern city of Khabarovsk Putin agreed that the fine of 1,500 roubles (USD 48) for tiger poaching was too small and in a lighter vein added: "Feed them to tigers and leopards!"
Putin, who last month hosted the International Tiger Summit in his hometown St. Petersburg, takes pride in the growth of tiger population in Siberia from roughly a couple of dozens to over five hundred in past decades.
Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov, who is accompanying Putin on the tour, told reporters that Russian Ministry of Natural Resources had already tabled a bill providing for harsher punishment for poaching and illegal hunting.
"It includes separate articles on tigers and leopards, stipulating harsher punishment for poaching, including arrest and imprisonment," Ivanov was quoted as saying by RIA Novosti.
Putin, known for his love for endangered wild beasts, in a recent interview to CNN said his interest in tigers was sparked by a TV report about US and Russian experts working together in the Russia''s far east to protect Siberian (Amur) tigers.
Putin said he was "ashamed" to see foreign experts involved in solving the problem of endangered animals in Russia, which moved him to take a tiger protection program under his personal control.
Local experts say that high price of tiger parts in the bordering China was the prime reason of poaching. PTI VS
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