Priya Aditi
The Biological Diversity (Amendment) Bill, 2021 was passed by the Lok Sabha on Tuesday during the ongoing Monsoon session of Parliament, despite opposition party demonstrations over the violence in Manipur.
Before the bill was passed, the environment minister of India, Bhupender Yadav, stated, “The world is confronting a triple crisis: climate change, desertification, and the depletion of biological resources. The purpose of the biological diversity act is to ensure the sustainable use of biological components and the equitable and reasonable distribution of benefits to vulnerable communities. We wish to promote business efficiency. The government promoted the use of biological resources during the Ayush era. We desire research, collaboration, and innovation in this industry. We want to foster business and living convenience.”
In its August 2022 report, the joint parliamentary committee that reviewed the contentious draught legislation to modify the biodiversity conservation law had accepted several amendments proposed by the government, such as exempting users of codified traditional knowledge from sharing benefits with local communities and replacing punishments with penalties.
The draught legislation was referred to the 21-member joint parliamentary panel after Yadav’s 16 December 2021 introduction prompted widespread criticism of several of its provisions.
According to the government, the amendments seek to reduce pressure on wild medicinal plants by encouraging cultivation and expediting research, patent applications, and the transfer of research results.
Critics stated that the proposed law intends to facilitate trade and benefit the AYUSH (Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha, and Homoeopathy) industry, which is contrary to the existing law’s objectives of conserving biodiversity.
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Traditional Indian medicine practitioners, the seed industry, and research organisations were concerned about the compliance burden of the Biological Diversity Act, 2002, which was enacted to conserve biological diversity and ensure equitable sharing of benefits resulting from the use of biological resources with indigenous and local communities.
