wild life and endangered species

The Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972: schedules, protected areas and trade in endangered species

In one minute

The Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972 protects wild animals and plants. It does this through schedules that rank species by their level of protection, and through protected areas such as national parks and sanctuaries.

The 2022 Amendment cut the number of schedules and added rules for trade in species listed under CITES. The Supreme Court supervises forest and wild life protection through continuing orders.

Exam focus

Frequency: Rarely asked
Usually asked as: Long answer (10 to 15 marks)

Legal provision

The Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972 (Act 53 of 1972): the central Act on wild animals, birds and plants and their habitats.
Entry 17B of the Concurrent List: protection of wild animals and birds, inserted by the Constitution (Forty-second Amendment) Act, 1976. Both Parliament and the States can make laws on it.
Article 48A and Article 51A(g): the State must safeguard wild life, and every citizen must have compassion for living creatures.
Sections 18 and 35 of the 1972 Act: the sections under which a sanctuary and a national park are notified, as the Godavarman order records.
The Wild Life (Protection) Amendment Act, 2022: restructured the schedules and added trade rules for species under CITES.

Meaning and definition

An endangered species is one at serious risk of extinction in the near future. The law protects such species in two ways. It lists them in schedules with strong penalties, and it protects the places where they live.

Killing or trapping wild animals for profit is called poaching. The Act aims to stop it, and it also regulates the trade in wildlife and its parts.

How the Act protects wild lifeHow to read this: start at the top box and follow the lines down to the three tools of protection.

Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972
- SchedulesRank species by the level of protection.
- Protected areasNational parks, sanctuaries, conservation and community reserves, tiger reserves.
- Trade rulesControl of trade in scheduled specimens under CITES.

Detailed explanation

Step 1: why a central law was needed

The Forty-second Amendment, 1976, moved the protection of wild animals and birds to the Concurrent List as Entry 17B. The central Act of 1972 was passed before that amendment.

Step 2: schedules

The schedules rank species. The Act had six schedules before the 2022 Amendment. They covered specially protected plants (one), specially protected animals (four) and vermin species (one). The 2022 Amendment reduced the number to four. Specially protected animals were kept in two schedules, the vermin schedule was removed, and a new schedule was added for specimens listed in the Appendices to CITES.

Under the amended Act, a species is vermin only if it is notified as vermin under section 62. A species outside the highest-protection schedules can be declared vermin for a place and a period.

Step 3: protected areas

National Park: notified under section 35. It gives strong protection to a natural area, a habitat.
Wildlife Sanctuary: notified under section 18 or later sections. Some regulated human activity may continue there.
Conservation Reserve (section 36A): an area next to a national park or sanctuary, declared in consultation with local communities.
Community Reserve (section 36C): private or community land where the community chooses to conserve wild life.
Tiger Reserve (section 38V): inserted in 2006, with a core area and a buffer zone.

Example. A village group in Rajasthan wants to protect a sacred grove on its own land. The land can be declared a community reserve, and the community keeps its ownership.

Step 4: CITES and international trade

CITES is the international convention on trade in endangered species. The 2022 Amendment lets the Central Government designate two bodies. A Management Authority grants export and import permits. A Scientific Authority advises on the effect of trade on the survival of the species. The Amendment also requires registration certificates for possession of live scheduled animals. The Central Government may regulate or prohibit the import, trade, possession or spread of invasive alien species.

Example. A trader in Kolkata wants to export a specimen of a species listed in the CITES schedule. He needs a permit from the Management Authority, which acts on the Scientific Authority's advice.

Exceptions and special rules

Court supervision

The Godavarman case is still open before the Supreme Court. On 13 November 2025, within the same writ petition, the Court directed the Jharkhand Government to notify a large part of the Saranda forest as a Wildlife Sanctuary. It also set a no-mining buffer around its boundary.

Details to read in the Act

The hunting prohibitions, the rules on changing the boundaries of protected areas and the penalties are in the Act itself. Read the amended sections before you write exact figures or section numbers in an answer.

Don't confuse: protected areas

Point	National Park	Sanctuary	Community Reserve
Notified under	Section 35	Section 18 and later sections	Section 36C
Land	Natural area of special value	Area for protecting wild life	Private or community land
Who starts it	The State	The State	The community proposes; the State declares

Inside the concept. A tiger reserve with a core area and a buffer zone is a protected area under the 1972 Act.

Just outside it. A city zoo breeds deer for display. It is not a protected area.

Common mistakes

Saying the Act has six schedules today. The 2022 Amendment reduced them to four.
Writing that vermin is a standing schedule. It is now declared by notification under section 62.
Confusing a conservation reserve (next to a park or sanctuary) with a community reserve (private or community land).

Leading case laws

T.N. Godavarman Thirumulpad v. Union of India
Facts. A petition about illegal timber felling in the Nilgiris grew into a nationwide inquiry and continuing supervision of forests.

Principle. Areas notified under sections 18 or 35 of the Wild Life Protection Act were kept out of the removal of fallen or diseased timber. In 2025 the Court ordered a large part of the Saranda forest notified as a sanctuary.

Why it matters. It shows the Supreme Court enforcing wild life protection by continuing orders.

How to write this answer in the exam

5-mark answer

Object of the 1972 Act and the Concurrent List entry.
Schedules and the 2022 changes.
Protected areas.
CITES trade rules.

10-mark answer

Need for a central law.
Schedules before and after 2022.
Each protected area, with the comparison table.
CITES authorities and registration.
Court supervision in Godavarman.

Key points to remember

Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972 (Act 53 of 1972); Entry 17B of the Concurrent List.
2022 Amendment: six schedules reduced to four; vermin schedule removed; CITES schedule added.
Vermin is declared under section 62.
Protected areas: national park (35), sanctuary (18 and later), conservation reserve (36A), community reserve (36C), tiger reserve (38V).
CITES: Management Authority and Scientific Authority.

Quick self-test

1. How many schedules does the amended Act have?

Four.

2. Under which section is a national park notified?

Section 35.

3. Who grants export and import permits for CITES specimens?

The Management Authority.