The Bombay Wild Animals and WildBirds Protection Act, 1951
The Bombay Wild Animals and Wild Birds Protection Act, 1951
The Bombay Wild Animals and Wild Birds Protection Act, 1951, is a legislative framework governing the regulation of hunting, the management of game sanctuaries, and the trade of wildlife products within the State of Maharashtra. It establishes a licensing system for hunting, defines protected species, and sets strict rules for trophy and pet dealing. The Act empowers government officials to manage wildlife, issue permits, and prosecute offenders. For an ordinary citizen, this Act serves as the legal boundary for interacting with wildlife, ensuring that activities like hunting or entering protected sanctuaries are conducted only with explicit government authorization and adherence to prescribed conservation standards.
- 1. Short title, extent and commencement
- 2. Definitions
- 3. Domesticated and other animals and birds in captivity exempted
- 4. Appointment of Wild Life Preservation Officer, Game Wardens and other Game Officers
- 5. Delegation of powers by Wild Life Preservation Officer
- 6. Constitution of State Wild Life Advisory Board
- 7. Duties of State Wild Life Advisory Board
- 8. Procedure of State Wild Life Advisory Board
- 9. Hunting of wild animals and birds without licence prohibited
- 10. Provided that no such licence shall be necessary to hunt any vermin.
- 11. Procedure for licence
- 12. Record of game to be kept and submitted
- 13. Issue of licence for special purposes
- 14. Suspension or cancellation of licence
- 14A. Appeals
- 15. Hunting of young and female with young prohibited
- 16. Close time
- 17. Unlawful methods of hunting
- 18. Declaration of certain animals and birds as vermins
- 18A. Application of sections 36 and 37 to game
- 19. Power to declare any area to be Game Sanctuary
- 20. Notification regarding declaration of Game Sanctuary
- 21. Bar of accrual of any rights in land comprised in Game Sanctuary
- 22. Proclamation by Collector
- 23. Inquiry by Collector
- 24. Extinction of rights
- 25. Power to acquire land over which right is claimed
- 26. Acquisition Proceedings
- 27. Power of Collector to be exercised by other officers
- 28. Restriction on entry in Game Sanctuary
- 29. Permit to enter or reside in a Game Sanctuary
- 30. Hunting in Game Sanctuary without permit prohibited
- 31. Refusal or cancellation of permit
- 32. Causing fire prohibited
- 33. Dealings in trophy and pets without licence prohibited
- 34. Trophy and pets dealer's licences
- 35. Every such licence shall be valid for one year from the date of issue, unless duly suspended or cancelled before that period.
- 36. Certificate of ownership
- 37. Export and sale of trophies regulated
- 38. Government trophies
- 39. Possession of Government trophy to be reported
- 40. Unlawful possession and dealings in Government trophies
- 41. Production of ivory or horn before Wild Life Preservation Officer
- 42. Registration of ivory or horn and identification marks
- 43. No ivory or horn to be transferred without a certificate of ownership
- 44. Power of entry, search, arrest and detention
- 45. Penalties
- 45A. Punishment for wrongful seizure
- 45B. Power to compound offences
- 46. When Court to take cognisance of offence
- 47. Operation of other laws not barred
- 48. Provided that no person shall be punished twice for the same offence.
- 49. Power to amend Schedules
- 50. Defence of life and property
- 51. Provided that nothing in this section shall exonerate any person who, when such defence became necessary, was hunting any game or committing any contravention of this Act.
- 52. Protection to persons acting in good faith
- 53. Power to exempt
- 53A. Power to amend Schedules
- 54. Repeal
- 55. Provided that any licence granted under the said Act and in force on the date of commencement of this Act shall continue to be in force and be deemed to have been granted under section 13 of this Act.
- I. SCHEDULE I
- II. SCHEDULE II
- III. SCHEDULE III
- IV. SCHEDULE IV
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