Department of Wildlife Conservation (Sri Lanka)
The Department of Wildlife Conservation (Sinhala: වනජීවී සංරක්ෂණ දෙපාර්තමේන්තුව Vanajivi Sanrakshana Departhamenthuwa) is a non-ministerial government department in Sri Lanka. It is the government department responsible for maintaining national parks, nature reserves and wildlife in wilderness areas in Sri Lanka. Forest reserves and wilderness areas are maintained by the Department of Forest Conservation. The head of the Department is the Director General of Wildlife Conservation, formally known as Warden. It was established in October 1949 with Captain Cyril Nicholas, MC as its first Warden.
වනජිවි සංරක්ෂණ දෙපාර්තමේන්තුව வனசீவராசிகள் பாதுகாப்பு | |
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Agency overview | |
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Formed | October 1949 (as the Wildlife Department) |
Preceding agencies |
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Jurisdiction | Government of Sri Lanka |
Headquarters | 811/A Jayanthipura Road, Battaramulla 10170 6.897154°N 79.919845°E |
Employees | 1,842 (2016)[1] |
Annual budget | Rs 2.54 billion (2016)[1] |
Minister responsible |
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Agency executive |
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Parent department | Ministry of Environment and Wildlife Resources |
Key document | |
Website | dwc |
Part of a series on |
Wildlife of Sri Lanka |
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Flora and fauna Birds (Endemics) Mammals (Endemics) |
Gardens Zoological gardens Pinnawela Elephant Orphanage Dehiwala Zoo Pinnawala Open Zoo Ridiyagama Safari Park Botanical gardens Hakgala Botanical Garden Henarathgoda Botanical Garden Mirijjawila Botanical Garden Peradeniya Botanic Gardens Seetawaka Botanical Garden |
Organizations Authorities Department of Forest Conservation Department of Wildlife Conservation Civil societies Field Ornithology Group |
Related topics |
Personal
Head quarters
The department is headed by the Director General of Wildlife Conservation, with it headquarters located in Battaramulla. The head office is made up of several divisions covering operations and administration under the preview of Directors, Deputy Directors and Assistant Directors.
Field deployments
Each province as an Assistant Director assigned to it with an office located within the province. The Elephant Transit Home and Training Center has an Assistant Director in charge of each.
The department deploys a large number of field officers and personal to manage and protect the wildlife in the national parks. They have law enforcement powers under the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance and the Fire Arms Ordinance. They operate range offices and beat offices.
The field carder grades include;
- Field carder
- Park Warden (Officer in charge of a National Park)
- Wildlife Ranger
- Wildlife Range Assistant
- Wildlife Guard (who also serve as trackers)
List of national parks administered by the Department
List of nature reserves
- Vidataltivu Nature Reserve
Conservation centers under the Department
- Udawalawe Elephant Transit Centre
See also
- Department of Forest Conservation
- Department of National Zoological Gardens
External links & reference
References
- "Budget Estimates 2017- Volume 3: Fiscal Year 2017". treasury.gov.lk. Ministry of Finance. Retrieved 3 November 2017.