Sections 49M to 49R: Breeders, Licences and Government Property

In one line

A register of who holds what, a licence for anybody breeding an Appendix I species, and a rule that decides which Schedule wins.

In exam wording: section 49M of the Wild Life (Protection) Act 1972 requires every person possessing a living specimen of an animal species listed in Schedule IV to report the details to the Management Authority or the authorised officer, permits that authority on being satisfied that the specimen was not obtained in contravention of any law relating to the protection of fauna and flora to issue a registration certificate allowing the owner to retain it, requires the reporting and registration of every transfer, of the birth of any offspring and of any death, and provides that no person shall possess, transfer or breed any such living specimen except in conformity with the section and the rules.

Continued: section 49N requires every person engaged in breeding in captivity or artificially propagating a scheduled specimen listed in Appendix I of Schedule IV to apply for a licence to the Chief Wild Life Warden within ninety days of the commencement of the Amendment Act of 2022; section 49-O provides for the grant, refusal, cancellation, duration and renewal of that licence and for an appeal to the State Government within sixty days; section 49P forbids altering, defacing, erasing or removing a mark of identification affixed upon a scheduled specimen or its package; section 49Q makes every species or scheduled specimen in respect of which an offence has been committed the property of the Central Government; and section 49R provides that where the same species is listed in Schedule I or II and in Schedule IV, the provisions applicable to Schedule I or II apply.

Section 49M: the register of living specimens

Sub-section (1): possession. Every person possessing a living specimen of an animal species listed in Schedule IV shall report the details to the Management Authority or the authorised officer. The proviso permits the Central Government to exempt one or more specimens of any Schedule IV species from declaration, for such quantity and such period as it deems fit.

Sub-section (2): the registration certificate. The authority may, on being satisfied that the person was in possession of a specimen which had not been obtained in contravention of any law relating to the protection of fauna and flora, issue a registration certificate allowing the owner to retain it.

Sub-sections (3) and (4): transfer. Any person who transfers possession by any means whatsoever shall report the details, and the authority shall register all transfers and issue the transferee with a registration certificate.

Sub-sections (5) and (6): birth. A person in possession of a specimen which bears offspring shall report the birth, and the authority shall register the offspring and issue a registration certificate to the owner.