For section 40 of the principal Act, the following section shall be substituted, namely:—

40. Provisions of this Act not to apply in certain cases.

Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, the Central Government may, in consultation with the National Biodiversity Authority, by notification in the Official Gazette, declare that all or any of the provisions of thisAct shall not apply to biological resources when normally traded as commodities or to the items derived from them, including agricultural wastes, as notified and cultivated medicinal plants and their products for entities covered under section 7, registered as per the regulations made or as prescribed:

Provided that no exemption shall be made for the activities referred to in sub-sections (1) and (2) of section 6.