Human-Wildlife Conflicts in India: The Legal Sphere and the Lacunae

Human–wildlife conflicts are described as the negative interactions that occur between humans and wildlife, resulting in detrimental impact to humans, wildlife and the available resources. The Wildlife (Protection) Act, of 1972 confers the highest degree of protection to animals contained in schedule I of the act. However, the majority animals contained therein are found outside the protected areas, rendering them unsafe due to their conflicts with humans. The lack of a specific legislation dealing with human- wildlife conflicts, and the disregard for the existing legal framework invigorates the extinction of several keystone species. It is undeniable that such conflicts impact both humans and animals; however, wildlife is compelled to pay a heavier price because of anthropocentric bias towards man. The landmark incident of tigress Avni’s killing put the spotlight on the complex nature of wildlife conservation in India and the emerging challenges. Even though it is not possible to completely eradicate these conflicts, effective community based mechanisms having strong legislative backing can aid in the mitigation of such incidents and pave the way towards the harmonious co-existence of humans and wildlife. This research paper aims to analyze the causes of the increase in incidents of human-wildlife conflicts along with the legislative lacunae surrounding the issue and provides solutions to minimize them.