›First enacted after Stockholm Conference (June 1972); 5th June = World Environment Day
›Forest/wildlife was earlier a State subject (Entry 20, List II, 7th Schedule); Parliament had limited power
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India has a comprehensive framework of environmental legislation, most of which was enacted after the 1972 Stockholm Conference on Human Environment (the first international discussion of environment). Constitutional provisions for environmental protection were added through the 42nd Amendment in 1976.
**Constitutional provisions (42nd Amendment, 1976):**
- Article 48-A (Directive Principle): "The state shall endeavour to protect and improve the environment and to safeguard forest and wildlife of the country."
- Article 51-A(g) (Fundamental Duty): "It shall be duty of every citizen of India to protect and improve the natural environment including forests, lakes, rivers and wildlife and to have compassion for living creatures."
- India is the first country in the world to include environmental protection in its Constitution.
**Legislative sequence:**
- Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972
- Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974
- Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980
- Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981
- Environment (Protection) Act, 1986
- Biological Diversity Act, 2002
- Forest Rights Act, 2006
All key facts
›*Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972:**
›First enacted after Stockholm Conference (June 1972); 5th June = World Environment Day
›Forest/wildlife was earlier a State subject (Entry 20, List II, 7th Schedule); Parliament had limited power
›Schedules I–V: rated by risk of survival; Schedule I = highest protection; Schedule VI (added 1991) = specified plant species
›Amended in 1982, 1986, 1991, 1993
›1991 amendment: State Governments cannot declare wild animals as vermin; immunisation of livestock within 5 km of NP/sanctuary made compulsory
›Amendment 2003: Conservation Reserves and Community Reserves added
›Major achievement: Joint Forest Management (JFM) Programme involving local communities
›*Biological Diversity Act, 2002:**
›Based on UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) 1992
›Three objectives: conservation, sustainable use, fair and equitable benefit sharing
›Three-tier structure: National Biodiversity Authority (NBA) → State Biodiversity Boards (SBBs) → Biodiversity Management Committees (BMCs at local level)
›NBA established 2003, Chennai; prior approval required for IPR on Indian biological resources
›*Forest Rights Act (Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers Act), 2006:**
›Provides restitution of deprived forest rights; both individual (cultivated land) and community rights (common property resources)
›Recognises community rights in addition to individual rights
›Right to protect, regenerate, conserve or manage community forest resources
›Right to intellectual property and traditional knowledge related to biodiversity
›First time community forest rights formally recognised in law
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