With reference to Indian laws about wildlife protection, consider the following statements:
- 1.Wild animals are the sole property of the government.
- 2.When a wild animal is declared protected, such animal is entitled for equal protection whether it is found in protected areas or outside.
- 3.Apprehension of a protected wild animal becoming a danger to human life is sufficient ground for its capture or killing.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Answer & explanation
Answer: (b) 2 only
Only statement 2 is correct. Under the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972, a listed animal is protected from hunting wherever it is, inside or outside protected areas. But only some wild animals become Government property, and a mere fear of danger does not justify killing or capturing one.
- ✗ 1. Section 39 makes only certain animals Government property, such as those hunted under a permit, kept or hunted against the Act, or found dead. It does not make every wild animal the sole property of the government.
- ✓ 2. Section 9 bars hunting of any animal listed in the Schedules, and the rule is not tied to protected areas. The protection applies inside or outside sanctuaries and parks.
- ✗ 3. Section 11 lets the Chief Wild Life Warden permit hunting only if satisfied that the animal has actually become dangerous to human life (or is beyond recovery), and, since 2003, that it cannot be captured, tranquilised or translocated. Fear of danger alone is not enough.
Remember · Under the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972, hunting of scheduled animals is barred everywhere. A dangerous animal may be killed only as a last resort, on the Chief Wild Life Warden's written order.
📘 Read it in NCERT: Class 10 Contemporary India – II, Ch 2 (practise this chapter)
Sources
- Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972, section 9 (India Code copy, archived) ↗ “No person shall hunt any wild animal specified in Schedules I, II, III and IV except as provided under section 11 and section 12. … wild animal, other than vermin, which is hunted under section 11 or sub-section (1) of section 29 or sub-section (6) of section 35 … no wild animal shall be ordered to be killed unless the Chief Wild Life Warden is satisfied that such animal cannot be captured, tranquilised or translocated”
- NCERT Class 10 · Contemporary India – II, Chapter 2 “The thrust of the programme was towards protecting the remaining population of certain endangered species by banning hunting, giving legal protection to their habitats, and restricting trade in wildlife.”
Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2022, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). ·