The Wildlife Protection Act (1972)
Contents
- Introduction
- History
- Salient features of the WPA (1972)
- Wildlife policy
- Effects on people
Introduction
The Indian Parliament passed the Wildlife (Protection) Act in 1972 to save various plant and animal species. Except for the State of Jammu and Kashmir, which has its own wildlife act, it covers the entirety of the Indian Union.
History
The British passed India's first wildlife conservation legislation in 1887. The Wild Birds Protection Act of 1887 was its official name. Its main goal was to prevent game bird hunting during the mating season in some parts of British India. The Wild Birds and Animals (Protection) Act, 1912 was subsequently passed in order to expand the protection's reach to include other animals (other than birds) and to make it applicable across British India. The Wild Birds and Animals Protection (Amendment) Act, 1935, revised the Act of 1912 at some point in 1935.
The Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act, passed by the Indian government in 1972, was a significant piece of wildlife conservation law in the post-Independence era. The first complete piece of legislation for managing and controlling wildlife, including their habitats, was this one. The Bombay Wild Birds and Animals (Protection) Act of 1950, drafted by the late naturalist Humayun Abdulali of the Bombay Natural History Society, served as the model for this Act, known as the Wildlife (Protection) Act of 1972 [WL (P) A].
Following then, the Act underwent a number of modifications in 1982, 1986, 1991, and 1993. This Act was further modified in 2002 and 2006, becoming the Wild Life (Protection) Amendment Act, 2006. With stiffer penalties for violations and provisions for the formation of several authorities to ensure India's wildlife is protected, the act's restrictions have grown increasingly onerous over time.
Salient features of the WPA (1972)
The Wildlife (Protection) Act (WLPA), 1972 provides a powerful legal framework for
- The ban on hunting wild animals. "Wildlife" in this context refers to any animal, including bees, butterflies, crustaceans, fish, and moths, as well as any aquatic or terrestrial flora that is a component of any environment.
- Preservation and management of ecosystems for animals • The creation of protected areas (Wildlife Sanctuary, National Parks, Community reserve and Conservation Reserve)
- Regulation and oversight of the trade in wildlife-derived products and parts
- Sdministration of zoos. Under this Act, the Central Zoo Authority is established to supervise how the zoos are run.
The WLPA provides a thorough definition of hunting. It encompasses all attempts to do so in addition to the actual killing, poisoning, snaring, and trapping of wild animals. For instance, even if the animal is not really killed, chasing it with hunting dogs is still illegal. Hunting also refers to "driving" any wild animal for the aforementioned objectives. Many tribes and kings engaged in driving, which was essentially organised hunting. According to the Act, it would also be considered hunting if you hurt, killed, or took any part of a wild animal. If the animal was a bird or a reptile, you could also hunt if you damaged an egg or disturbed its nest.
The definition of "animal" in the act covers amphibians, birds, mammals, reptiles, and their young, as well as their eggs in the cases of birds and reptiles. Because of this, any individual or individuals who injure or intend to harm any of these—including children or eggs—are deemed offenders. Hunting is only permitted under a few, extremely uncommon circumstances. It is not considered to be a crime to kill or injure a wild animal while defending oneself or another person. For the purpose of hunting wild animals that have become a threat to human life or that are so ill or crippled that they are not likely to recover, special authorization may also be granted. Large creatures, such bears or leopards, have frequently come into close proximity with or attacked humans in recent years. In such circumstances, the state's Chief Wildlife Warden may authorise the capturing of the animal or, if necessary, its euthanasia. Although it is strictly regulated and monitored by the forest department, trapping animals for management and scientific research is also permitted.
Schedules
The six Schedules of the Act are listings or categories of the flora and fauna that are mentioned in the Act. Animals are categorised into Schedules I through IV. All of the animals listed in Schedules I through IV of the Act are off limits to hunting. Due to illegal trade, habitat degradation, and risks from poaching, these species are all regarded as endangered to varying degrees. The animals (or species) listed in each schedule are briefly described below.
- Schedule I contain highly threatened animals such as tiger, python, lion etc.
- Schedule II contains reptiles and insects, mostly under trade of some kind.
- Schedule III and IV contains other animals.
- Schedule V species are classed as vermin and can be killed if declared so. Common crow, rats, mice and fruit bats are included in the schedule and killing them is not a wildlife offence.
- In 2016, controlled culling of crop raiding wild animals such as nilgai and wild boar in parts of Bihar and rhesus monkey in parts of Himachal Pradesh by declaring them ‘vermin’ was approved by the Ministry of Environment and Forest, and Climate Change. However this was opposed by many. In the opinion of wildlife scientists, culling is not a scientific measure to reduce wildlife conflicts which, in any case, is caused by multiple factors, including loss of habitats. Animal rights activists opposed culling as cruelty.
- Schedule VI includes protected plants. Examples of such species are the Ladies Slipper orchids and Blue Vanda orchid, and the Indian pitcher plant which are endangered species with high trade potential.
Protected Area
The Wildlife Protection Act, which was created with the Smithsonian Institution's (USA) professional guidance, contains provisions for designating specific areas as "protected areas" in order to establish national parks or wildlife sanctuaries. It contains practises that work against the rights of local residents in certain places while aiming to conserve the environment.
It defines few types of protected areas
- National Parks, which can be informed in regions with significant ecological, botanical, animal, and geomorphological value. The State Government must dispose of any claims about any land in the region intended to be a national park and all rights to the land that is proposed to be included in the national park must be transferred to the Government before notification can be made. This procedure can take a long time.
- Areas of sufficient ecological, faunal, floral, geomorphological, natural, or zoological significance are considered wildlife sanctuaries. The statement of intent to notify the Wildlife Sanctuary and the area's borders are required for notification. Thirdly, all claims made in respect to any land must be resolved by the State Government once a period for preferring claims and with regard to peoples' rights has passed.
- Under the centrally supported Project Tiger programme, tiger reserves are established by the National Tiger Conservation Authority pursuant to the Wild Life (Protection) Amendment Act, 2006. National Tiger Conservation Authority is responsible for overseeing tiger reserves (NTCA). Without the National Board for Wild Life's approval and the Tiger Conservation Authority's counsel, no border change may be made.
Legal protections for national parks and tiger reserves are stricter, with almost no human activity permitted other from that which is necessary for the conservation of wildlife. Grazing and private tenure rights were not permitted in national parks, although the state's chief wildlife warden may permit them in wildlife sanctuaries. However, even in National Parks and Sanctuaries, the Forest Rights Act may be used to recognise rights. With the approval of the state's Chief Wildlife Warden, activities such as research, photography, tourism, scientific study, and conducting legal business with any resident of a sanctuary are all permitted. In all national parks and wildlife sanctuaries, the modified WLPA prohibits the commercial exploitation of any forest products, and local communities are only permitted to collect forest products for legitimate requirements.
The WLPA involves complex processes for handling legal rights in proposed protected areas, and any land or interest acquired under this law is considered to have been acquired for the public good. The Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006, has made it necessary to ensure compliance with a number of laws relating to communal and tenurial rights. Community reserves and conservation reserves are two more types of protected places that were included under the WLPA in addition to the three types already mentioned. State governments have the authority to establish conservation reserves in any government-owned land, although they are especially encouraged to do so in areas that border national parks and sanctuaries, as well as in areas that connect one protected area to another. The local communities must be consulted before such a declaration is made. These designated Conservation Reserves are intended to safeguard the environment's land and marine environments, as well as its flora and fauna. Residents of Conservation Reserves are not subject to restrictions on their privileges. The State Government may designate Community Reserves on any private or public land that is not a part of a National Park, Sanctuary, or Conservation Reserve and where a person or a community has committed to protect wildlife and its environment.
Community Reserves are established to save the flora, fauna, and traditional or cultural conservation principles. The rights of those residing inside a Community Reserve are unaffected, much like in the case of a Conservation Reserve. If a group of individuals is engaged in conservation effort that has received legal approval from the forest department, community reserves may be established.
Only the local community is involved in the conservation efforts in both cases. These categories offer the chance to safeguard numerous areas of high conservation value that cannot be declared under categories like wildlife sanctuaries or national parks, as well as a larger role for local communities, stakeholders, and civil society. Up until now, they have frequently been regions that serve as migration routes, buffer zones, or linkages between well-established national parks and wildlife sanctuaries. The Act also establishes the National Tiger Conservation Authority and the procedures for the appointment of state wildlife agencies and wildlife boards. The 2006 amendment created the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB) to oversee and regulate the unlawful trade in wildlife goods.
Trade in wildlife
According to this act, wild animals and any products made from them are public property. Due to cultural and economic considerations, several animal parts have been in high demand. Ivory from elephants, shahtoosh shawls made from Chiroo deer wool, snake skins and venom, rhinoceros horns, tiger and leopard skins, and many other animal parts have all been sought-after commodities, which has resulted in widespread poaching. Many people like to collect large conches, seashells, butterflies, and colourful beetles. Such things, as well as the trading in live or dead wild animals, is forbidden and carries severe penalties. Any person who keeps animals or other similar possessions is required to turn them over to the government unless they have a specific permit to do so for justifiable reasons.
Penalties for violation of the law
Hunting is not permitted inside or outside of protected areas for any wild animal, bird, amphibian, reptile, fish, crustacean, insect, or coelenterate specified in four Schedules of the WLPA. If found guilty, the punishment for hunting is a minimum of three years in prison and a maximum of seven years in prison as well as a fine of at least 10,000 rupees.
Wildlife policy
The Prime Minister of India chairs the National Board for Wildlife (NBWL), which establishes the nation's policy framework for wildlife protection. In response to the need for a shift in priorities due to increased commercial exploitation of natural resources, continuous population growth of humans and animals, and changes in consumption patterns, the National Wildlife Action Plan (2002-2016) was released in 2002. It highlights how involved and supportive the public is of wildlife protection. The network of protected areas is strengthened and improved with an emphasis on protecting threatened species and their ecosystems, regulating the trade in wildlife goods, and advancing training, research, and education. The Plan elaborates on the necessity for voluntary village relocation and rehabilitation within protected areas and includes numerous proposals to fulfil the needs of local populations living outside protected areas. The Plan also emphasises the need for efficient compensation systems and the need to lessen conflicts between people and wildlife. One of its main goals is to restore damaged habitats outside of protected zones.
Effects on people
In the Indian terrain, people and wildlife have coexisted for many years. The provisions of the numerous Acts and modifications mentioned above had significant effects on how people and wildlife interact. In India, many communities still rely on forested lands. It was frequently done without taking into account their rights to use fuel, fodder, and other non-timber forest products required for their livelihoods when National Parks and Wildlife Sanctuaries were declared. The government forcibly removed residents from numerous National Parks and Tiger Reserves, sparking violent clashes. This increased the distance between people and other natural components and spread the myth that people and animals cannot coexist. We can better comprehend the intricate nature of the situation by using an example. As the last home of the Asiatic Lion, the Gir forest is well recognised. Along with the lions, the Maldhari, a cattle-herding community, resided in Gir Forest. More than 800 Maldhari families were forcibly removed from the region designated as the National Park in 1972. In an ineffective rehabilitation effort, 600 of these households were relocated and given land in settlements close to the sanctuary. However, because the resettlement was badly carried out, many prosperous pastoralists were quickly plunged into destitution. There are numerous other national parks and sanctuaries in India where similar tales of struggle between human interests and the conservation of wildlife are well known. The World Bank and the Global Environment Facility (GEF) provided assistance with the implementation of a number of Integrated Conservation and Development
Projects in the middle of the 1990s at the request of the Indian government. The goal was to promote both sustainable human development and animal conservation through a number of eco-development programmes in and around protected areas. Because of poor execution and ongoing conflicts, the programmes' success has been limited.
Many tribes, particularly those that lived in the forest, used to rely on hunting and gathering for their daily needs. Wildlife provided much-needed sustenance in isolated regions and barren environments. The first laws, such the Wild Birds and Animals (Protection) Act of 1912, intended to safeguard wildlife, permitted hunting with permits. Due to this circumstance, all hunter-gatherer societies were branded as poachers while authorised hunters from royal families and other people in positions of authority continued to kill wildlife. During the colonial era, tens of thousands of tigers, leopards, elephants, and rhinoceroses were hunted. Currently, no one is given a hunting licence, despite the fact that illegal hunting is still common in many places due to lax police enforcement. The trading in wildlife parts provided a living for some cultures. The legislation soon came into confrontation with snake charmers (snake keepers), phase paradhis (who hunted birds and mammals), makadwallas (who trained monkeys for shows), darvesh, or madaris. Only a few of them had the skills to locate alternate sources of income, and their livelihoods were in danger.
India's wildlife is still declining for a number of reasons. Many contend that the Wildlife (Protection) Act has not been properly implemented and is frequently unable to halt the devastation of wildlife. However, there are numerous instances when the act has been successful in preserving threatened flora and environments. Finding appropriate ways to apply the law is essential, as are finding ways to close the gap between people and animals and promote coexistence through raising knowledge of the value of wildlife protection.
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