5 Current Status of Environment in India (Biodiversity and Climate Change) -III

Gajendra Singh Vishwakarma

1.  Status of Biodiversity of India

1.1. Biodiversity hotspots

1.2. Animal Biodiversity

1.3. Plant Biodiversity

1.4. Endemism Species in India

1.5. Fish Biodiversity

1.6. Agricultural crops and domesticated animal biodiversity

1.7. Indian Forest Cover

1.8. Biodiversity Conservation in India

1.9 Wetlands in India

1.10. Project Tiger

1.11. Project Elephant

1.12. Project Rhino (Indian Rhino Vision (IRV) 2020)

1.13. Ganga Dolphin Conservation

1.14. Indian Crocodile Conservation Project

2.  New Initiatives and Efforts by Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change

2.1. Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA)

2.2. National River Conservation Directorate (NRCD)

2.3. National Green Tribunal

2.4 National Centre for Sustainable Coastal Management (NCSCM)

2.5. Capacity Building for Industrial Pollution Management (CBIPM)

2.6. Other Initiatives

1. Status of Biodiversity of India

India is one of the biodiversity country out of 17 identified mega diverse countries. The country with only 2.4% of the world’s land area, accommodates 7-8% species of flora and fauna that, includes more than 45,000 species of plants and 91,000 species of animals. It is situated at the tri-junction of the Afro-tropical, Indo-Malayan and Palearctic realms, all of which support rich biodiversity. Being one of the largest diversity nation, India has 10 biogeographic zones and houses 11.80% species of plants, 8.58% species of mammals, 13.66% species of aves, 7.91 % species of reptiles, 4.66% species of amphibians, and11.72% species of fishes. Out of 34 globally identified biodiversity hotspots, four spots namely the Himalaya, Indo-Burma, the Western Ghats-Sri Lanka and Sunda land, belong to India. India is also a recognized center of crop diversity and produces hundreds of varieties of crop plants such as rice, maize, millets etc. The diverse physical features and climatic conditions of India is responsible for a variety of ecosystems such as forests, grasslands, wetlands, and desert, coastal and marine ecosystems.(Source: India’s Fifth National Report to The Convention on Biological Diversity, MoEF, GOI).

1.1. Biodiversity hotspots

The idea of hotspots was first given by ecologist Norman Myers in 1988, who defined a hotspot as an area of exceptional plant, animal and microbe wealth that is under threat. The main criteria for determining a hotspot are endemism (the presence of species found nowhere else on earth) and degree of threat. Out of the 34 global biodiversity hotspots, four are present in India (Conservation International 2013):

1. The Himalaya: Western and Eastern Himalaya form part of Himalayan global biodiversity hotspot.
2. The Western Ghats: Part of Western Ghats- Sri Lanka global biodiversity hotspot.
3. North-East: Part of Indo-Burma global biodiversity hotspot.
4. Nicobar Islands: Part of the Sunda land global biodiversity hotspot

1.2 Animal Biodiversity

With only about 2.4% of world’s total land surface, India has over 6.7% of the total animal species that world holds. This includes approximately 96,373 known species, comprising 63,423 insect species. The numbers of threatened faunal species in different categories and those listed in the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN 2014-15) are given in Figures.

(Source: India’s Fifth National Report to the Convention on Biological Diversity, MoEF, GOI)

1.3 Plant Biodiversity

With an estimated 29,105 species of algae, bryophytes, pteridophytes, gymnosperms and angiosperms, India holds 9.13% of the world’s known floral diversity in these groups. The richness of Indian plant species as compared with the world is shown in Table.

 Marine Biodiversity

India’s coastal and marine areas hold many biological treasures. Dense mangrove forest of Sunder-bans, the world’s largest congregations of nesting turtles in Odisha, beautiful seagrass beds in Palk Bay, dolphins and dugongs in the Gulf of Mannar, majestic whale sharks in the Gulf of Kachchh and some of the world’s most beautiful coral reefs are just a few examples of the treasures of India’s coastal and marine biodiversity. The marine floral and faunal biodiversity of India is remarkable, with over 200 diatom species, 90 dinoflagellates, 844 marine algae, 560 species of corals and 39 mangrove species, more than 10,000 invertebrate species and 2,500 vertebrate species.

1.4. Endemism Species in India

In terms of endemism of vertebrate groups, India’s global ranking is 10th in birds, with 69 species, fifth in reptiles, with 156 species, and seventh in amphibians, with 110 species. Endemism is manifested most prominently in the Indian fauna among the Amphibia (61.2%) and Reptilia (47%). It is estimated that 62% of the known amphibian species are endemic to India, of which a majority are found in the Western Ghats (Source: http://www.vigyanprasar.gov.in). Endemism in plants is significant across different plant groups in India. India accommodates 47 families, 141 genera and about 4045 species of flowering plants (angiosperms). These are distributed in the floristically rich areas of North-east India, the Western Ghats, the North-west Himalaya and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

1.5. Fish Biodiversity

Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) has recorded 3,022 species which constitute about 9.41% of the known fish species of the world. National Bureau of Fish Genetic Resources (NBFGR) is mandated to carry out research related to cataloguing, characterization and conservation of country’s fish germplasm resources. The Bureau has built up a database on about 2553 native fish species of India; generated information on population genetic structure of 23 prioritized endemic and commercially-important species.

1.6. Agricultural crops and domesticated animal biodiversity

India is basically an agriculture based county. It has 15 different agro-climatic zones. India is also considered to be a center of origin of rice. India also has a vast and rich repository of farm animals, represented by a broad spectrum of native breeds of cattle (34), buffaloes (12), goat (21), sheep (39) and chicken (15). To conserve India’s rich domesticated biodiversity and promote crops and animal breeds, the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) has set up six national bureaus namely, plant genetic resources, animal genetic resources, fish genetic resources, agriculturally important insects, agriculturally important microorganisms and soil sciences. These bureaus serve as the nodal organizations for characterization, evaluation, cataloguing and establishing of national databases of living organisms corresponding to their mandates. Apart from this India is also preserved billions of diverse microbes, many of which are found nowhere else in the world. The country is also accomplished with enormous variability in agriculturally important microorganisms. (Source: India’s Fifth National Report to The Convention on Biological Diversity, MoEF, GOI).

1.7. Indian Forest Cover

According to the recently released India State of Forest Report (ISFR) 2015-16, India’s forest and tree cover has been increased by 5081 Square kilometre.

The total forest and tree cover in the country is 79.42 million hectare, which accounts for 24.16 per cent of the total geographical area. The total forest cover of the country has increased by 3, 775 sq km and the tree cover has gone up by 1, 306 sq km.

The majority of the increase in forest cover has been observed in open forest category mainly outside forest areas, followed by Very Dense Forest.

Open Forest area: Increased by 4744 sq km and accounts for 9.14 per cent of the total geographical area.

Very Dense Forest area: Increased by 2404 sq km and accounts for 2.61 per cent of the total geographical area.

Total carbon stock: Increased by 1.48 per cent (103 million tonnes) and is estimated to be 7, 044 million tonnes in the country’s forest. Around 40 per cent forest cover in India is in 9 big patches of 10, 000 sq kms and more. The increase in mangrove cover also has been included in the increase in total forest cover.

State wise maximum increase in forest cover: Tamil Nadu (2, 501 sq km), Kerala (1, 317 sq km) and Jammu & Kashmir (450 sq km).

Largest forest cover in terms of area: Madhya Pradesh (77, 462 sq km), Arunachal Pradesh (67, 248 sq km) and Chhattisgarh (55, 586 sq km).

Highest percentage of forest cover: Mizoram (88.93%), Lakshadweep (84.56%).

States/UTs having forest cover above 33 per cent: 15 States/UTs have forest cover above 33 percent of the geographical area. Out of these 7 states/UTs have more than 75 per cent forest cover. They are Mizoram, Lakshadweep, Andaman & Nicobar Island, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Meghalaya and Manipur. 8 states have forest cover in between 33 per cent to 75 per cent. They are Tripura, Goa, Sikkim, Kerala, Uttarakhand, Dadra & Nagar Haveli, Chhattisgarh and Assam.

Mangroves, corals and seagrasses

India has a long coastline of about 7,517 km in length consisting of 2,383 km of extensive coral reef beds and 4,667 km of mangrove habitats that are home to more than 12,000 species of flora and fauna. Along with these, other ecosystems, such as lagoons, estuaries and seagrasses, spread over an area of 4500 km, sustain and provide a source of livelihood to over 250 million people.

(Source: India State of Forest Report (ISFR) 2015-16)

1.8. Biodiversity Conservation in India (Protected Areas (PAs) National Parks, Sanctuaries Conservation and Community Reserves)

India has a very long tradition of setting aside areas for conservation of wild flora and fauna. After independence, several Protected Areas (PAs) were designated in the form of National Parks and Wildlife Sanctuaries. Protected areas are those in which human interference and the exploitation of resources is restricted. Protected areas are categorized depending upon the level of protection, governed by the laws of each country or the regulations of the international organizations involved. Currently in the form of protected area India form a network of 103 National Parks covering 40500.13 km and 544 Sanctuaries covering 118931.80km, 76 Conservation Reserves and 46 Community Reserves.

Fig 4: No of National Parks in different states of India

Source: National Wildlife Database Cell, Wildlife Institute of India

1.9 Wetlands in India

India is bestowed with a rich diversity of wetlands, ranging from high altitude lakes of the Himalayas, floodplains and marshes of the Gangetic – Bramhaputra alluvial plains, saline flats of Green Indian Desert to extensive mangroves marshes bordering the country’s East and West coastline. As per remote sensing imagery based assessment, India has total of 26 ramsar wetlands sites covering a total area of 12119.03 km2. List of Ramsar sites in India is given in the table.

1.10. Project Tiger

Project Tiger was launched by the Government of India in the year 1973 to save the endangered species of tiger in the country. Starting from nine (9) reserves in 1973-2016 the number is grown up to fifty (50). A total area of 71027.10 km2 is covered by these project tiger areas.

1.11. Project Elephant

Project Elephant (PE) was launched by the Government of India in the year 1992 as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme with following objectives : To protect elephants, their habitat & corridors, To address issues of man-animal conflict and Welfare of captive elephants. Till now 28 Elephant Reserves (ERs) extending over about 61830.08 sq km have been formally notified by various State Governments. Consent for establishment 2 more ERs – Khasi Elephant Reserve in Meghalaya and Dandeli Elephant Reserve in Karnataka has been accorded by MoEF&CC.

1.12. Project Rhino (Indian Rhino Vision (IRV) 2020)

IRV 2020 is a partnership between the Assam Forest Department, the Bodoland Territorial Council, WWF, IRF, and the US Fish and Wildlife Service. Its goal is to have a wild population of at least 3,000 Greater one-horned rhinos in the Indian state of Assam – spread over seven protected areas – by the year 2020. IRV 2020 is an ambitious rhino range and population expansion programme.

1.13. Ganga Dolphin Conservation

• The Ministry of Environment and Forests notified the Ganges River Dolphin as the National Aquatic Animal.
• The River Dolphin inhabits the Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna and Karnaphuli-Sangu river systems of Nepal, India, and Bangladesh.
• It is estimated that their total population is around 2,000 and they are listed in Schedule I of the Wildlife Protection Act (1972).
• The Ganges Dolphin is among the four “obligate” freshwater dolphins found in the world — the other three are the ‘baiji found in the Yangtze River (China), the ‘bhulan’ of the Indus (Pakistan) and the ‘boto’ of the Amazon River (Latin America).
• Although there are several species of marine dolphins whose ranges include some freshwater habitats, these four species live only in rivers and lakes.
• In India, the Ganges River Dolphin is threatened by river water pollution and siltation, accidental entanglement in fishing nets and poaching for their oil.

1.14. Indian Crocodile Conservation Project

The Indian Crocodile Conservation Project has pulled back the once threatened crocodilians from the brink of extinction and place them on a good path of recovery. The objective of Project crocodile are

• To protect the remaining population of crocodilians in their natural habitat by creating sanctuaries.
• To rebuild natural population quickly through ‘grow and release’ or ‘rear and release’ technique.
• To promote captive breeding.

2.  New Initiatives and Efforts by Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change

2.1.  Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA)

Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA) is related to promotion of afforestation and regeneration activities. It act as a way of compensating for forest land diverted to non-forest uses. National CAMPA Advisory Council has been established as per orders of The Hon’ble Supreme Court. Under this an e-Green watch programme is being developed, it is as an integrated & online system that will be completely transparent, reliable and accountable. It will also present the data in real time and shall be accessible to all stakeholders and public at large. It will allow for monitoring, evaluation, social and ecological audits by independent organizations researchers and the public. Source:

Ministry of Environment & Forests and Climate Change, Government of India http://www.moef.nic.in/division/ramsar-convention-wetland Date of access 02/02/2018

2.2 National River Conservation Directorate (NRCD)

The National River Conservation Directorate (NRCD) in the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change is implementing the Centrally Sponsored Schemes of National River Conservation Plan (NRCP) and National Plan for Conservation of Aquatic Ecosystems’ (NPCA) for conservation of rivers, lakes and wetlands in the country. NRCD is only providing financial assistance under the National River Conservation Plan to the State Governments/ local bodies to set up infrastructure for pollution abatement of rivers in identified polluted river stretches based on proposals received from the State Governments/ local bodies. Source: Ministry of Environment & Forests and Climate Change, Government of India http://www.moef.nic.in/division/ramsar-convention-wetland Date of access 02/02/2018

2.3. National Green Tribunal

The National Green Tribunal has been established on 18.10.2010 under the National Green Tribunal Act 2010 for effective and expeditious disposal of cases relating to environmental protection and conservation of forests and other natural resources including enforcement of any legal right relating to environment and giving relief and compensation for damages to persons and property and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto. It is a specialized body equipped with the necessary expertise to handle environmental disputes involving multi-disciplinary issues. The Tribunal shall not be bound by the procedure laid down under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, but shall be guided by principles of natural justice. Source:

Ministry of Environment & Forests and Climate Change, Government of India http://www.moef.nic.in/division/ramsar-convention-wetland Date of access 02/02/2018

2.4 National Centre for Sustainable Coastal Management (NCSCM)

The objective of this scheme is to promote sustainable coasts through increased partnerships, conservation practices, scientific research and knowledge management for the benefit and well-being of current and future generations.

2.5. Capacity Building for Industrial Pollution Management (CBIPM)

Capacity Building for Industrial Pollution Management (CBIPM) project will help the Government of India to build capacity at the state and central level, and develop a framework to address these issues in a comprehensive and systemic manner under an area-wide management approach. The proposed project is aligned with the endeavor of the Govt. of India to establish a National Program for Rehabilitation of Polluted Sites (NPRPS) as a framework for scaling up the cleanup and rehabilitation of polluted sites and facilitate the reduction of environmental and health risks associated with legacy polluted sites. Source:

Ministry of Environment & Forests and Climate Change, Government of India http://www.moef.nic.in/division/ramsar-convention-wetland Date of access 02/02/2018

2.6 Other Initiatives

• Conservation of Natural Resources and Ecosystems
• Environment Information, Education & Awareness
• Environmental Management in Heritage, Pilgrimage and Tourist Centres Including Taj Protection
• Social Forestry with communities (Panchayat Van Yojana)

Bibliography

• India State of Forest Report (ISFR) 2015-16
• India’s Fifth National Report to The Convention on Biological Diversity, MoEF, GOI
• Ministry of Environment & Forests and Climate Change, Government of India
  http://www.moef.nic.in/division/ramsar-convention-wetland Date of access
  02/02/2018
• National Wildlife Database Cell, Wildlife Institute of India