The government has extended privileges and immunities to the International Big Cat Alliance (IBCA) and its officials under the United Nations (Privileges and Immunities) Act, 1947, Environment Minister Bhupendra Yadav said on Friday.
A government notification issued on August 8 formalised the move, following a Host Country Agreement between India and IBCA for its establishment in the country.
The minister said the step enables the alliance to function effectively as a global platform for cooperation, knowledge exchange, and capacity building on big cat conservation.
Thanking the government, the IBCA said in a post on X, “By according these privileges and immunities, the Government of India has further empowered IBCA to function effectively as a global platform dedicated to fostering collaboration, knowledge exchange, and capacity building for the conservation of #bigcats worldwide.”
The IBCA, launched in April 2023 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is a treaty-based inter-governmental organisation that covers conservation of seven big cats — tiger, lion, leopard, snow leopard, cheetah, jaguar, and puma. It brings together 95 range and non-range countries, conservation partners, scientific organisations, and corporates to promote collaboration and share conservation practices.
The first Assembly of the IBCA was held in New Delhi in June this year. The meeting was chaired by Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav and was attended by ministerial delegations from nine countries, including Bhutan, Cambodia, Eswatini, Guinea, India, Liberia, Suriname, Somalia, and Kazakhstan.
The Assembly unanimously endorsed Bhupender Yadav as the President and S.P. Yadav as the Director General of IBCA. It also ratified key documents, including the Headquarters Agreement with India, the Workplan, Rules of Procedure, and Financial Regulations, laying the groundwork for effective operations of the alliance.