SC upholds Allahabad HC decision with regard to exotic wildlife species

SC upholds Allahabad HC decision with regard to exotic wildlife species

Part of: GS Prelims and GS-II – Judiciary

In news

• Recently, The Supreme Court upheld an Allahabad High Court order which had granted immunity from investigation and prosecution if one declared illegal possession of exotic wildlife species between June and December, 2020. 
• This was under a new amnesty scheme announced by the Centre.

Important value addition

Government’s voluntary disclosure scheme

• Ministry: The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) 
• It released an advisory on a one-time voluntary disclosure scheme that allows owners of exotic live species that have been acquired illegally to declare their stock to the government between June and December 2020.
• With this scheme, the government aims to address the challenge of zoonotic diseases, develop an inventory of exotic live species for better compliance under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), and regulate their import.
• Presently, the amnesty scheme is just an advisory and not a law.
• The disclosure has to be done online through MoEFCC’s Parivesh portal.

• The advisory has defined exotic live species as animals named under the Appendices I, II and III of the CITES.
• It does not include species from the Schedules of the Wild Life (Protection) Act 1972.