Who gains from saving nature
Ledger 1 : 33 — For each dollar financing nature-based solutions in 2023, about $33 financed activities harmful to nature. (UNEP)
Cases / Killings and repression of defenders · India · 2013–2017

Kaziranga shoot-on-sight killings (India)

Nature's voice · report
No measurement of the harm done to me here is on record.
Did nature suffer? Not measured.
People
  • Per park director 22 people died.
    Described as crossfire.
  • Per park director 23 people died.
    Described as crossfire.
  • Per park director 5 people died.
    Described as crossfire.
  • Per activist group 55 people died.
    Count for 2013 to 2016, via Down To Earth; another source gives 2013 to 2017.
  • At least 62 people died. not independently verified
    Over nine years (2007 to 2016), attributed to Newslaundry and Scroll; not independently verified.
  • 106 people died. not independently verified
    Over 20 years, attributed to Survival International; the source could not be found.
  • 1 people were injured.
    A boy of seven or eight shot in the leg on 12 July 2016.
  • 2 people died.
    Killed when police fired during the 19 September 2016 eviction.
What the record lacks: 4 none on record · 5 insufficient · 1 not measured · 3 disputed · 1 unclear See the gaps

Dozens of people were reported killed in encounters with forest guards at Kaziranga National Park in Assam between 2013 and 2016. The park director described the deaths as crossfire; critics said the guards worked under a shoot-on-sight policy, which the park management denies.

22 / 23 / 5People killed in 2014 / 2015 / 2016, park director's figures
Described by the director as crossfire. An activist group counted 55 killed from 2013 to 2016.

Status Latest dated item in the sources reviewed: July 2017 press report on the boy shot in 2016; no prosecution of a guard for a killing is recorded.

What?
People were reported killed in encounters with forest guards at Kaziranga National Park; the park director described the deaths as crossfire, while critics alleged a shoot-on-sight policy that park management denies. Newslaundry
Where?
Kaziranga National Park, Assam, India. Down To Earth
When?
Counts cover 2013 to 2016 (park director: 2014 to 2016); BBC film aired 11 February 2017. Newslaundry
Who?
Gained
None on record
Lost
  • Families of those killed — Deaths of relatives, at counts that differ by source Down To Earth
Harmed
  • A boy of seven or eight from Sildhubi village — Shot in the leg by a forest guard on 12 July 2016; doctors said he needed a year and two major operations Down To Earth
  • Residents of three villages near the park — About 300 houses brought down in the 19 September 2016 eviction; two people killed when police fired on protesters
Why?
The park director described the deaths as crossfire. The sources reviewed do not state an official policy reason; park management denies a shoot-on-sight order. Newslaundry
How?
Killings were reported in encounters between forest guards and suspected poachers. A 2010 Assam government notification under section 197 of the Code of Criminal Procedure is reported to give guards first-stage protection against prosecution, and informers can receive rewards of up to $1,000 where their information leads to a death.
6 of 6 questions answered from the record

What happened

The record, in order.

Kaziranga National Park in Assam, India, has been on the UNESCO World Heritage list since 6 December 1985 and covers 42,996 hectares. Park management denies that there is an official shoot-on-sight order.

The BBC film "Killing for Conservation", presented by Justin Rowlatt, aired on 11 February 2017. Park director Satyendra Singh gave figures of 22 people killed in 2014, 23 in 2015 and 5 in 2016, and described the deaths as crossfire. An activist group, via Down To Earth, counted 55 people killed from 2013 to 2016. A 2014 forest department report is cited in the sources as saying that no forest staff were killed in encounters from 1985 to June 2014.

India's environment ministry called the film "grossly erroneous". The National Tiger Conservation Authority recommended blacklisting Rowlatt and barred the BBC from filming in tiger reserves for five years. The park director rejected the BBC's claims.

On 12 July 2016, at about six in the evening, a boy of seven or eight was shot in the leg in Sildhubi village on the edge of the park. His father said a forest guard shot him from close range; two guards were suspended after public protest. The father said the forest administration had said it would pay for treatment, but did not take the family to Delhi after a hospital in Guwahati could not provide adequate care. The family went to a hospital in Delhi with money collected by villagers, where doctors said the boy needed a year and two major operations. The sources reviewed record no prosecution of the guard and no compensation.

On 19 September 2016, an eviction under a Gauhati High Court order in three villages near the park brought down about 300 houses, and police fired on protesters. Two people died. India's National Human Rights Commission took up the case on its own motion; the sources reviewed do not give an outcome.

  1. 19856 December: Kaziranga placed on the UNESCO World Heritage list (42,996 ha)
  2. 2010Assam government issues a notification under section 197 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, reported to give guards first-stage protection against prosecution
  3. 2014Park director's figure: 22 people killed; park strategy proposal reported by BuzzFeed News to include wording on never allowing unauthorised entry
  4. 2015Park director's figure: 23 people killed
  5. 2016April: a royal visit to the park; 12 July: a boy is shot by a forest guard; 19 September: eviction at Banderdubi, two people killed; park director's figure for the year: 5 killed
  6. 201711 February: BBC film aired; environment ministry calls it "grossly erroneous"; NTCA bars the BBC from filming in tiger reserves for five years

What was said

Claims, in the words of those who made them.

“grossly erroneous”

India's environment ministry, on the BBC film · February 2017 · The Wire

“Indian law should not be construed as authorising a … shoot on sight … policy”

Independent panel commissioned by WWF, in a note on Kaziranga · November 2020

Where accounts differ

Each party's account, side by side, with its source. The record does not settle these points; it shows them.

How many people were killed by guards, and in what circumstances?
Government and regulators
Park director Satyendra Singh

22 people killed in 2014, 23 in 2015 and 5 in 2016, described as crossfire.

Newslaundry
Communities and civil society
Activist group (via Down To Earth)

55 people killed from 2013 to 2016.

Down To Earth
Press and investigations
BBC

Aired "Killing for Conservation" on 11 February 2017 on the killings at Kaziranga.

The Wire
Is there a shoot-on-sight policy at Kaziranga?
Government and regulators
Park management

Denies an official shoot-on-sight order.

Newslaundry
Government and regulators
India's environment ministry

Called the BBC film "grossly erroneous".

The Wire
Press and investigations
BuzzFeed News

Reported that a 2014 strategy proposal for the park included wording to the effect of never allowing unauthorised entry ("kill the unwanted"), with five WWF India employees listed as an expert panel.

Researchers
Independent panel commissioned by WWF

Took no position on the shootings but noted that "Indian law should not be construed as authorising a … shoot on sight … policy".

How it looked

What was shown, beside what was recorded.

Shown

  • The deaths were crossfire in encounters between guards and poachers.
    Park director Satyendra Singh, as reported · Newslaundry
  • There is no official shoot-on-sight order.
    Park management, as reported · Newslaundry

Recorded

  • Park director's figures: 22 people killed in 2014, 23 in 2015, 5 in 2016.
    Newslaundry
  • An activist group, via Down To Earth, counted 55 killed from 2013 to 2016.
    Down To Earth
  • A 2014 forest department report is cited as saying no forest staff were killed in encounters from 1985 to June 2014.
    The Wire
  • BuzzFeed News reported that a 2014 strategy proposal for the park included wording to the effect of never allowing unauthorised entry ("kill the unwanted"), and listed five WWF India employees as an expert panel.
  • An Assam government notification of 2010 under section 197 of the Code of Criminal Procedure is reported to give guards first-stage protection against prosecution.
  • More than 20 people were reported killed in 2015, reported as more than the number of rhinos poached that year.
  • Informers can receive up to $1,000 if information they give leads to a death, according to the park director's 2014 report as reported.
    Newslaundry
  • Eviction of 19 September 2016 under a Gauhati High Court order: about 300 houses in three villages, police fired on protesters, two killed (an 18-year-old woman and a man). The National Human Rights Commission took up the case on its own motion.
  • Two guards were suspended after the shooting of the boy in July 2016.
    Down To Earth

Who gained

Money that reached nature, beside money that stayed elsewhere.

Reached nature or the ground

Not published
No figure published.

Gained elsewhere

Not totalled
Currency: · Window: . All figures cover the same period. * Estimate built from cited figures.

Responses on record

  • kaziranga-park-management (February 2017): Park director Satyendra Singh described the deaths as crossfire; park management denies an official shoot-on-sight order and rejected the BBC's claims. · Newslaundry
  • india-environment-ministry (February 2017): Called the BBC film "grossly erroneous". · The Wire
  • ntca (2017): Recommended blacklisting the BBC presenter and barred the BBC from filming in tiger reserves for five years. · The Wire
  • wwf (November 2020; November 2021): The independent panel it commissioned took no position on the shootings. Mongabay reported in November 2021 that WWF distanced itself from rights abuses at a US congressional hearing. · Mongabay

In court and with insurers

Every proceeding and every insurer decision on record.

Lawsuits and rulings

  1. 2016–Outcome not on record
    National Human Rights Commission own-motion case on the Banderdubi eviction
    National Human Rights Commission of India · Administrative · National Human Rights Commission (own motion) → Not stated in the sources reviewed

    After police fired on protesters during the 19 September 2016 eviction of about 300 houses under a Gauhati High Court order, two people were killed. The Commission took up the case on its own motion; the outcome was not found.

Insurers

No insurer decision on record.

What nature saw

Outcomes measured on the ground, and nature's note.

Nature's report opens this page. Below: further outcomes measured on the ground.

People killed in 2015 compared with rhinos poached
More people
More than 20 people reported killed in 2015, more than the number of rhinos poached that year; the rhino figure is not given in the sources reviewed
Guard tried for a killing
None found
No guard tried for a killing was found in the sources reviewed
Official cumulative total of deaths
None found
Counts differ by source and period and none is an official total

What we don't know

Undisclosed, unproven, untried: recorded as data.
No court caseDeaths reportedDisplacement reported

Nature

  • Not measured Harm to nature: The record holds no measurement of harm to nature.

Court

  • Unclear National Human Rights Commission own-motion case on the Banderdubi eviction: outcome not on record.

Figures

  • Insufficient Deaths: Over nine years (2007 to 2016), attributed to Newslaundry and Scroll; not independently verified.
  • Insufficient Deaths: Over 20 years, attributed to Survival International; the source could not be found.

Accounts

  • Disputed How many people were killed by guards, and in what circumstances?
  • Disputed Is there a shoot-on-sight policy at Kaziranga?

Record

  • Disputed No official cumulative total of people killed at Kaziranga exists in the sources reviewed; the counts differ by period and method.
  • Insufficient A figure of 106 people killed in 20 years, attributed to Survival International, could not be traced to a source and is reported but not independently verified.
  • Insufficient A figure of at least 62 people killed over nine years, attributed to Newslaundry and Scroll, is reported but not independently verified.
  • None on record The period for the activist group's count of 55 killed is given as 2013 to 2016 in one source and 2013 to 2017 in another.
  • None on record No guard was found to have been tried for a killing at Kaziranga.
  • None on record No prosecution of the guard who shot the boy in July 2016, and no compensation, was found.
  • None on record The outcome of the National Human Rights Commission's own-motion case on the 19 September 2016 eviction was not found.
  • Insufficient A 2017 arrest of a guard said to have threatened to shoot villagers as 'poachers' was reported by Survival International; reported but not independently verified.

Did the harm stop?

The sources reviewed do not say whether the killings have stopped. The park director's figures fall from 23 in 2015 to 5 in 2016.

Who paid?

People living around the park, according to the counts of an activist group and press reports; the sources reviewed do not record compensation or prosecution.

Sources

Voices on record: — Company or project— Government and regulators— Courts✓ Press and investigations— Communities and civil society— Researchers

Press and investigations

Connected cases

Related matters, and cases linked to this one through the same organisations, with the role each played in both.
Terms used on this page

Science and environment

Hectare (ha)
A unit of area equal to 10,000 square metres, about 2.5 acres. 100 hectares make one square kilometre.

Institutions

OECD complaint
A complaint filed with a government's National Contact Point under the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises; the process is mediation, not a court.
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