Environment and Disaster Management › Biodiversity governance
हिन्दी — Read in HindiBiodiversity and wildlife law in India
India's biodiversity and wildlife law and the bodies that run it: the Biological Diversity Act and its three tiers, access and benefit sharing, zoos and animal welfare. Prelims has asked about Biodiversity Management Committees and what Schedule I protection means.
Foundation note: The Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972: the schedules
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National Board for Wildlife
Copy link to National Board for WildlifePrelims and Mains
The National Board for Wildlife is the apex statutory wildlife body under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, chaired by the Prime Minister with the Environment Minister as vice chairperson.
- Its Standing Committee gives the wildlife clearance that any project inside a protected area needs.
- Such a project must pass two separate gates: environmental clearance under the Environment Impact Assessment Notification, 2006, and wildlife clearance routed through the State Board for Wildlife.
What changed
8 Jul 2026New
- Retired forest officers have moved the Delhi High Court, saying the Standing Committee approved more than 97 per cent of proposals to divert or denotify protected land between 2014 and 2026.
- They also said the full Board met in 2025 after a gap of 13 years.