CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu government reconstituted the State Board for Wildlife, nominating three MLAs and several conservation experts and civil society representatives to the statutory panel.

According to a Government Order issued by the Environment, Climate Change and Forests Department on October 28, the board was reconstituted under Section 6(1) of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, following the expiry of the tenures of non-official members.

The Chief Minister serves as Chairperson of the reconstituted board, while the Minister for Forests is the Vice Chairperson.

The three legislators nominated as members to the apex wildlife body are M Sudhakar (Katpadi), S Karthikeyan (Madurai East), and M R Pallavi (Thiru Vi Ka Nagar).

The government also appointed representatives from non-governmental organisations working in wildlife and environment conservation, including Jose Louies of the Wildlife Trust of India, and Balaji Vedharajan of the OMCAR Foundation.

Among eminent conservationists, biologists, and environmentalists inducted onto the panel are R, Padmawathe, Director of the Advanced Institute for Wildlife Conservation (Vandalur), Anita Arjundas of the Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE), V Arun of the Students Sea Turtle Conservation Network (SSTCN), and Yash Veer Bhatnagar of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

The move follows a proposal submitted by the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests and Chief Wildlife Warden requesting the reconstitution of the statutory board after the previous term lapsed.