What is the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972

This Act provides for the protection of the country’s wild animals, birds, and plant
species, in order to ensure environmental and ecological security. Among other
things, the Act lays down restrictions on hunting many animal species. The Act was
last amended in the year 2006. An Amendment bill was introduced in the Rajya
Sabha in 2013 and referred to a Standing Committee, but it was withdrawn in 2015.

Constitutional Provisions for the Wildlife Act

Article 48A of the Constitution of India directs the State to protect and improve the
environment and safeguard wildlife and forests. This article was added to the
Constitution by the 42nd Amendment in 1976.

Article 51A imposes certain fundamental duties for the people of India. One of them
is to protect and improve the natural environment including forests, lakes, rivers, and
wildlife and to have compassion for living creatures.

History of Wildlife Protection Legislation in India

 The first such law was passed by the British Indian Government in 1887 called the Wild
Birds Protection Act, 1887. The law sought to prohibit the possession and sale of
specified wild birds that were either killed or captured during a breeding session.
 A second law was enacted in 1912 called the Wild Birds and Animals Protection Act. This
was amended in 1935 when the Wild Birds and Animals Protection (Amendment) Act
1935 was passed.
 During the British Raj, wildlife protection was not accorded a priority. It was only in 1960
that the issue of protection of wildlife and the prevention of certain species from
becoming extinct came into the force.

Need for the Wildlife Protection Act

Wildlife is a part of ‘forests’ and this was a state subject until the Parliament passed
this law in 1972. Now it is on the Concurrent List. Reasons for a nationwide law in
the domain of the environment particularly wildlife include the following:

1. India is a treasure of varied flora and fauna. Many species were seeing a rapid decline in
numbers. For instance, it was mentioned by Edward Pritchard Gee (A naturalist), that at
the turn of the 20th century, India was home to close to 40000 tigers. But, a census in
1972 showed this number drastically reduced to about 1827.
2. A drastic decrease in the flora and fauna can cause ecological imbalance, which affects
many aspects of climate and the ecosystem.
3. The most recent Act passed during the British era in this regard was the Wild Birds and
Animals Protection, 1935. This needed to be upgraded as the punishments awarded to
poachers and traders of wildlife products were disproportionate to the huge financial
benefits that accrue to them.
4. There were only five national parks in India before the enactment of this Act.
Salient Features of Wildlife Protection Act
This Act provides for the protection of a listed species of animals, birds, and plants,
and also for the establishment of a network of ecologically-important protected areas
in the country.

 The Act provides for the formation of wildlife advisory boards, wildlife wardens, specifies
their powers and duties, etc.
 It helped India become a party to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered
Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).

 CITES is a multilateral treaty with the objective of protecting endangered animals

and plants.
 It is also known as the Washington Convention and was adopted as a result of
a meeting of IUCN members.
 For the first time, a comprehensive list of the endangered wildlife of the country was
prepared.
 The Act prohibited the hunting of endangered species.
 Scheduled animals are prohibited from being traded as per the Act’s provisions.
 The Act provides for licenses for the sale, transfer, and possession of some wildlife
species.
 It provides for the establishment of wildlife sanctuaries, national parks, etc.
 Its provisions paved the way for the formation of the Central Zoo Authority. This is the
central body responsible for the oversight of zoos in India. It was established in 1992.
 The Act created six schedules which gave varying degrees of protection to classes of
flora and fauna.
 Schedule I and Schedule II (Part II) get absolute protection, and offences under
these schedules attract the maximum penalties.
 The schedules also include species that may be hunted.
 The National Board for Wildlife was constituted as a statutory organization under the
provisions of this Act.
 This is an advisory board that offers advice to the central government on issues
of wildlife conservation in India.
 It is also the apex body to review and approve all matters related to wildlife,
projects of national parks, sanctuaries, etc.
 The chief function of the Board is to promote the conservation and development
of wildlife and forests.
 It is chaired by the Prime Minister.
 The Act also provided for the establishment of the National Tiger Conservation
Authority.
 It is a statutory body of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change
with an overall supervisory and coordination part, performing capacities as given
in the Act.
 Its mandate is to strengthen tiger conservation in India.
 It gives statutory authority to Project Tiger which was launched in 1973 and has
put the endangered tiger on a guaranteed path of revival by protecting it from
extinction.
Protected Areas under the Wildlife Protection Act
There are five types of protected areas as provided under the Act. They are
described below.

1. Sanctuaries: “Sanctuary is a place of refuge where injured, abandoned, and

abused wildlife is allowed to live in peace in their natural environment without any
human intervention.”

1. They are naturally occurring areas where endangered species are protected from
poaching, hunting, and predation.
2. Here, animals are not bred for commercial exploitation.
3. The species are protected from any sort of disturbance.
4. Animals are not allowed to be captured or killed inside the sanctuaries.
5. A wildlife sanctuary is declared by the State government by a Notification. Boundaries
can be altered by a Resolution of the State Legislature.
6. Human activities such as timber harvesting, collecting minor forest products, and private
ownership rights are permitted as long as they do not interfere with the animals’ well-
being. Limited human activity is permitted.
7. They are open to the general public. But people are not allowed unescorted. There are
restrictions as to who can enter and/or reside within the limits of the sanctuary. Only
public servants (and his/her family), persons who own immovable property inside, etc.
are allowed. People using the highways which pass through sanctuaries are also allowed
inside.
8. Boundaries of sanctuaries are not generally fixed and defined.
9. Biologists and researchers are permitted inside so that they can study the area and its
inhabitants.
10. The Chief Wildlife Warden (who is the authority to control, manage and maintain all
sanctuaries) may grant permission to persons for entry or residence in the sanctuary for
the study of wildlife, scientific research, photography, the transaction of any lawful
business with persons residing inside, and tourism.
11. Sanctuaries can be upgraded to the status of a ‘National Park’.
12. Examples: Indian Wild Ass Sanctuary (Rann of Kutch, Gujarat); Vedanthangal Bird
Sanctuary in Tamil Nadu (oldest bird sanctuary in India); Dandeli Wildlife Sanctuary
(Karnataka).

2. National Parks: “National Parks are the areas that are set by the government to
conserve the natural environment.”

1. A national park has more restrictions as compared to a wildlife sanctuary.

2. National parks can be declared by the State government by Notification. No alteration of
the boundaries of a national park shall be made except on a resolution passed by the
State Legislature.
3. The main objective of a national park is to protect the natural environment of the area
and biodiversity conservation.
4. The landscape, fauna, and flora are present in their natural state in national parks.
5. Their boundaries are fixed and defined.
6. Here, no human activity is allowed.
 7. Grazing of livestock and private tenurial rights are not permitted here.
8. Species mentioned in the Schedules of the Wildlife Act are not allowed to be hunted or
captured.
9. No person shall destroy, remove, or exploit any wildlife from a National Park or destroy or
damage the habitat of any wild animal or deprive any wild animal of its habitat within a
national park.
10. They cannot be downgraded to the status of a ‘sanctuary’.
11. Examples: Bandipur National Park in Karnataka; Hemis National Park in Jammu &
Kashmir; Kaziranga National Park in Assam. See more on the List of National Parks in
India.

3. Conservation Reserves: The State government may declare an area (particularly

those adjacent to sanctuaries or parks) as a conservation reserve after consulting
with local communities.

4. Community Reserves: The State government may declare any private or

community land as a community reserve after consultation with the local community
or an individual who has volunteered to conserve the wildlife.

5. Tiger Reserves: These areas are reserved for the protection and conservation of
tigers in India. They are declared on the recommendations of the National Tiger
Conservation Authority.

The amended Wildlife Act doesn’t allow any commercial exploitation of forest
produce in both wildlife sanctuaries and national parks, and local communities
are allowed to collect forest produce only for their bona fide requirements.

Schedules of the Wildlife Protection Act

There are six schedules provided in the Wildlife Protection Act. They are discussed
in the table below.

Schedule I Schedule II

 This Schedule covers endangered species.  Animals under this list are also accorded
 These species need rigorous protection and high protection.
therefore, the harshest penalties for violation of  Their trade is prohibited.
the law are under this Schedule.  They cannot be hunted except under
 Species under this Schedule are prohibited to be threat to human life.
hunted throughout India, except under threat to  Examples: Kohinoor (insect), Assamese
human life. Macaque, Bengal Hanuman langur,
 Absolute protection is accorded to species on this Large Indian Civet, Indian Fox, Larger
list. Kashmir Flying Squirrel, Kashmir Fox,
 The Trade of these animals is prohibited. etc.
 Examples: tiger, blackbuck, Himalayan Brown
Bear, Brow-Antlered Deer, Blue whale, Common
Dolphin, Cheetah, Clouded Leopard, hornbills,
 Indian Gazelle, etc.
Schedule III & IV Schedule V

 This list is for species that are not endangered.  This schedule contains animals that can
 This includes protected species but the penalty be hunted.
for any violation is less compared to the first two  Examples: mice, rat, common crow, fruit
schedules. bats, etc.
 Examples: hyena, Himalayan rat, porcupine,
flying fox, Malabar tree toad, etc.
Schedule VI

 This list contains plants that are forbidden from cultivation.

 Examples: pitcher plant, blue vanda, red vanda, kuth, etc.

 Bodies Constituted under the Act:

o National Board for Wildlife (NBWL):
 NBWL serves as an apex body for the review of all
wildlife-related matters and for the approval of projects
in and around national parks and sanctuaries.
o State Board for Wildlife (SBWL):
 The Chief Minister of the state/UT is the chairperson of
the board.
o Central Zoo Authority:
 The Central Zoo Authority consists of a total 10
members including the Chairperson and a Member-
Secretary.
 The authority provides recognition to zoos and is also
tasked with regulating the zoos across the country.
 It lays down guidelines and prescribes rules under
which animals may be transferred among zoos
nationally and internationally.
o National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA):
 Following the recommendations of the Tiger Task
Force, NTCA was constituted in 2005 for strengthening
tiger conservation.
 The Union Environment Minister is the Chairperson of
NTCA and the State Environment Minister is the Vice-
Chairperson.
  The Central Government on the recommendations of
NTCA declares an area as a Tiger Reserve.
o Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB):
 The act provided for the constitution of WCCB to combat
organized wildlife crime in the country.
 Protected Areas Under the Act:
o There are five types of protected areas under the Act which
are: Sanctuary, National Parks, Conservation Reserves,
Community Reserves and Tiger Reserves.
 Important Amendments done to the Act:
o Wildlife (Protection) Amendment Act of 1991:
 This amendment strengthened the penalties and fines
for wildlife-related offences and also introduced
provisions for the protection of endangered species.
o Wildlife (Protection) Amendment Act of 2002:
 This amendment introduced the concept of community
reserves and conservation reserves as protected
areas.
o Wildlife (Protection) Amendment Act of 2006:
 This amendment dealt with the issue of human-wildlife
conflict and provided for the creation of a National Tiger
Conservation Authority (NTCA) to manage and protect
tiger reserves.
 It also made provisions for the creation of a Tiger and
Other Endangered Species Crime Control Bureau to
deal with wildlife-related crimes.
o Wildlife (Protection) Amendment Act, 2022:
 The Act seeks to increase the species protected under
the law and implement CITES.
 The number of schedules has been reduced to four:
 Schedule I containing animal species enjoying
the highest level of protection.
 Schedule II for animal species subject to a lesser
degree of protection.
  Schedule III for protected plant species, and
 Schedule IV for scheduled specimens under
CITES.
 The Act permits the use of elephants for 'religious or
any other purposes'.
 The penalties have also been increased for general and
specially protected animals' violations.
What are the Initiatives of Wildlife Development Under WPA,
1972?
 Project Tiger Conservation:
o Project Tiger Conservation to conserve the population of
tigers. Launched in 1973, the project is still ongoing with the
help of the Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate
Change.
 Project Elephant:
o Project Elephant is launched by the central government
in 1992 to protect and conserve elephants.
o A total of 88 corridors were identified under the Act.
 Wildlife Corridors:
o Wildlife corridors are connected with the protected areas
and allow the movement of animals without interfering
with human settlements. Recently, India's first urban wildlife
corridor is being planned between New Delhi and Haryana.
The corridor is near the Asola Bhatti wildlife sanctuary to
provide safe passage to wildlife animals such as leopards and
other animals.

Questions related to Wildlife Protection Act,

1972
 How many Schedules are there in the Wildlife
Protection Act 1972?
There are six schedules under the Act.

 In which state Wildlife Protection Act is not

applicable?

The Act is applicable throughout India.

 What steps have been taken by the government

to conserve wildlife?

The government enacted the Wildlife (Protection) Act in 1972 which laid down a
comprehensive set of rules and regulations with respect to the protection of wildlife in
India. It laid down the provisions for the setting up of national parks, wildlife
sanctuaries, etc. Project Tiger is being implemented which has caused the dwindling
tiger population to increase. The country saw a 30% rise in the tiger population from
2010 to 2014.

What are the major threats to wildlife?

Some of the major threats to wildlife are:

Habitat destruction/degradation/fragmentation
Overexploitation of habitat resources
Hunting
Poaching
Climate change
Pollution

How does the extinction of species affect the

environment?
Every living thing on this planet has a role to play in the ecosystem and the food
chain. The extinction of any one species will have an impact on forests, cause loss of
food for certain species, affect the way diseases travel in the animal world, etc.