---
title: "Schedule I, Wildlife Protection Act: Meaning"
description: "Schedule I of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 grants top protection to species like tigers, imposing severe penalties for hunting or trade."
url: "https://modeldiplomat.com/learn/glossary/schedule-i-wildlife-protection-act"
---

[New](https://modeldiplomat.com/)

#

Model Diplomat Research Team · Last reviewed June 22, 2026

TL;DR

- Schedule I lists the species accorded the highest protection under India's Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, attracting the most severe penalties for hunting or trade.
- What penalty does hunting a Schedule I animal carry?
- How did the 2022 amendment change Schedule I?
- Is Schedule I the same as CITES Appendix I?
- Can a Schedule I animal ever be legally killed?

[Civil Service & Diplomatic Exams](https://modeldiplomat.com/learn/civil-services/glossary)Updated June 22, 2026

Go beyond the definition

## Research Schedule I of the Wildlife (Protection) Act like a delegate

Model Diplomat's AI drafts position papers, speeches, and country research with real sources — built for MUN and politics students.

## Timeline

1. 9 September 1972

   The Act, passed by Parliament on under the legislative competence Parliament acquired through the 42nd Constitutional Amendment (which moved "protection of…

2. 1 April 2023

   The most consequential structural change arrived with the Wild Life (Protection) Amendment Act, 2022, which came into force on and rationalised the six-sche…

## Research it like a delegate

Research on modeldiplomat.com

## Ask a follow-up about Schedule I of the Wildlife (Protection) Act

Open a cited briefing in Model Diplomat search — timelines, positions, and sources you can use in committee or exam answers.

[Start research on Schedule I of the Wildlife (Protection) Act](https://modeldiplomat.com/search?q=Explain%20Schedule%20I%20of%20the%20Wildlife%20\(Protection\)%20Act%20%E2%80%94%20key%20dates%2C%20actors%2C%20positions%2C%20and%20sources)

Example

In 1998, actor Salman Khan was prosecuted for poaching blackbuck, a Schedule I species, near Jodhpur, Rajasthan; he was convicted by a trial court in 2018 under the Wildlife (Protection) Act.

Keep learning

## Go deeper than the definition

[Explore all Civil Service & Diplomatic Exams lessons](https://modeldiplomat.com/learn/civil-services)[Test yourself with a quiz](https://modeldiplomat.com/learn/glossary/quiz/civil-services)

## Take Schedule I of the Wildlife (Protection) Act beyond the glossary

Ask the AI research engine built for diplomacy — get briefings, position papers, and speeches with sources you can cite in committee.