Policy
Impact
The new Act amends the Biological Diversity Act , 2002 to simplify compliance requirements for domestic companies . Users of codified traditional knowledge and AYUSH practitioners will be exempted from sharing benefits with local communities . The Act will remove research and bio-survey activities from the purview of benefit sharing requirements . Benefit sharing will be based on terms agreed between the user and the local management committee represented by the National
Authority . The Amendments also decriminalise violation . The amendments free practitioners of Indian systems of medicine from the need to take approvals for access or share benefits .
Concerns
The experts point out that the amendments do not address the issues that biodiversity conservation in India face . India has to take adequate steps to meet the new conservation targets set up at the 15th Conference of Parties to CBD held in Montreal in December 2022 . The world has just seven years to meet these ambitious targets .
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