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Unlike in the past, habitat destruction
and other
environmental damage are eroding our natural flora |
Fast-diminishing wealth - The
now extinct Cheetah is a
concern for the many species of Indian wildlife under threat
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C0NSERVATION OF
FLORA & FAUNA |
Flora is basically the
plant life that is present in a particular region or habitat or at a
particular time and fauna is the animal life that is present in a
particular region or habitat or at a particular time. Biodiversity is a
very large topic and somewhat difficult to define adequately in only a
sentence or two. In the very simplest terms, "biodiversity" means the
diversity of life on our planet, which includes genetic diversity,
species diversity, and habitat diversity. Diversity can be defined as
the number of different items and their relative frequency. For
biological diversity, these items are organized at many levels, ranging
from complete ecosystems to the chemical structures that are the
molecular basis of heredity. Thus, the term encompasses different
ecosystems, species, genes, and their relative abundance." The area of
flora, fauna and biodiversity is quite interrelated. Flora and fauna
forms a major part of biodiversity.
India is a land of varied flora, fauna and biodiversity. India is one of
the twelve mega-diverse nations of the World. Two of India's great
mountain ranges, the Eastern Himalayas and the Western Ghats have been
designated among the world's eighteen 'hotspots' of biodiversity. But In
the last few decades we have seen a steady increase in the extinction
rate of flora, fauna etc. all over world including India and so now,
conservation of biological diversity is of paramount importance to the
survival of man. Conservation of biological diversity leads to
conservation of essential ecological diversity to preserve the
continuity of food chains. The genetic diversity of plants and animals
is preserved. It ensures the sustainable utilisation of life support
systems on earth. It provides a vast knowledge of potential use to the
scientific community. A reservoir of wild animals and plants is
preserved, thus enabling them to be introduced, if need be, in the
surrounding areas. Biological diversity provides immediate benefits to
the society such as recreation and tourism. Biodiversity conservation
serves as an insurance policy for the future.
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Flora of India
Many believe only animals are endangered. They think wild plants can
just grow back after damage. Our native plants are declining at an
alarming rate. Among them are some of the most beautiful and useful
species on Earth. The implications of this trend are stunning. The
importance of plants to life on Earth is immeasurable. The landscape and
wildlife we cherish, the food we eat, even the very air we breathe is
connected to plant life.
Plants support wildlife. For every plant species that goes extinct, up
to 30 other species of plants, insects and other animals may also
decline. Plants provide the food and habitat for wildlife, from birds
and butterflies, to antelope and field mice!
Plants support a healthy environment. They provide clean air, help hold
soil in place, clean water, moderate wind and water impacts, and shade
the earth.
Plants support people. Plants give many gifts to man. They provide food,
fiber, fuels, pharmaceuticals, ornamentals and fragrance. Many of our
native plants are known to contain chemicals that can be used to treat
human illnesses. Others have the ability to fight agricultural pests and
improve existing crops. Even more economic and scientific treasures
await discovery. Each species is a potential natural resource.
This is a real crisis. Habitat destruction, invasive foreign plants and
animals, over collection, and other environmental damage are eroding our
natural plant communities. Some species have declined to such small
numbers that a bad storm or a plant collector could wipe them out in
minutes. Without intervention they will be lost forever.
The vegetation of India comprises some 15,000 species of plants. The
jungles are thick and wooded with the flora to back up the fabulous
fauna. Evergreen forests in the north-east and along the Western Ghats,
moist and dry deciduous forests of the plains, swampy marshes of Bengal
and Madhya Pradesh, pinewoods of the Himalayan foothills and the lagoons
and estuaries down south - each pave for a different ecosystem,
sheltering unique forms of plant and animal life.
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Fauna of India
India has some of the world's most biodiverse regions. The political
boundaries of India encompass a wide range of ecozones—desert, high
mountains, highlands, tropical and temperate forests, swamplands,
plains, grasslands, riverine areas as well as island archipelago. It
hosts three biodiversity hotspots: the Western Ghats, the Eastern
Himalayas, and the hilly ranges that straddle the India-Myanmar border.
India's 3,166,414 square kilometres shows a notable diversity of
habitats, with significant variations in rainfall, altitude, topography,
and latitude. The region is also heavily influenced by summer monsoons
that cause major seasonal changes in vegetation and habitat.
India is home to several well known large mammals including the Asian
Elephant, Bengal Tiger, Asiatic Lion, Leopard and Indian Rhinoceros,
often engrained culturally and religiously often being associated with
deities. Other well known large Indian mammals include ungulates such as
the rare Wild Asian Water buffalo, common Domestic Asian Water buffalo,
Nilgai, Gaur and several species of deer and antelope. Some members of
the dog family such as the Indian Wolf, Bengal Fox, Golden Jackal and
the Dhole or Wild Dogs are also widely distributed. It is also home to
the Striped Hyaena, Macaques, Langurs and Mongoose species.
Many of the gods are associated with certain animals: Brahma with the
deer, Vishnu with the lion and cobra, Siva with the bull, and Ganesh,
the eternal symbol of wisdom, is half man and half elephant. The
earliest known conservation laws come from India in the 3rd century BC,
when Emperor Ashoka wrote the Fifth Pillar Edict, forbidding the
slaughter of certain wildlife and the forests. Unfortunately, during the
recent turbulent history of India, much of this tradition has been lost.
Extensive hunting by the British and Indian rajas, large-scale clearing
of forests for agriculture, availability of guns, poaching, strong
pesticides and the ever - increasing population have had disastrous
effects on India's environment. Only around 10% of the country still has
forest cover, and only 4% is protected within national parks and similar
reserves. However, in the past few decades the government has taken
serious steps towards environmental management and has established over
350 parks, sanctuaries and reserves.
Conservation
The need for conservation of wildlife in India is often questioned
because of the apparently incorrect priority in the face of dire poverty
of the people. However Article 48 of the Constitution of India specifies
that "the state shall endeavour to protect and improve the environment
and to safeguard the forests and wildlife of the country" and Article
51-A states that "it shall be the duty of every citizen of India to
protect and improve the natural environment including forests, lakes,
rivers, and wildlife and to have compassion for living creatures."
Large and charismatic mammals are important for wildlife tourism in
India and several national parks and wildlife sanctuaries cater to these
needs. Project Tiger started in 1972 is a major effort to conserve the
tiger and its habitats. At the turn of the 20th century, one estimate of
the tiger population in India placed the figure at 40,000, yet an Indian
tiger census conducted in 1972 revealed the existence of only 1827
tigers. Various pressures in the later part of the 20th century led to
the progressive decline of wilderness resulting in the disturbance of
viable tiger habitats.
Conservation projects have been established to preserve them, but for
some species, such as the Indian cheetah, protection has come too late -
the Indian cheetah was last seen in 1948.
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Ecology and
Ecosystem (E&E)
An ecosystem is a complex set of relationships among living resources,
habitats and residents of a region. And Ecology is the scientific study
of the processes influencing the distribution and abundance of
organisms, the interactions among organisms, and the interactions
between organisms and the transformation and flux of energy and matter.
India is blessed with a wide variety of ecosystems. But its ecosystems
and ecology are assaulted increasingly. Ecological understanding offer
tangible hope for addressing extremely complex and potentially
devastating assaults on local, regional and global ecosystems. And this
kind of understanding can only be developed when information on varied
ecosystems and ecology reach out not only to policy makers but also to
people at large. It should especially reach out to the weaker segments
of the populations of developing countries like India, for these are the
people who suffer most from a loss of nature's services. Information on
ecology and ecosystems help in identifying key issues as well as
identifying trends, drivers and potential responses. These would provide
lessons that would be of great value to the decentralized development
planning.
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Status of Environment
Severe environmental degradation threatens to undermine the productivity
and economic growth. Against this backdrop, the challenge for the Indian
states is not only to minimize the environmental degradation but also to
structure the economic decision-making process, keeping in mind the
environmental concerns to make the state's development sustainable. And
a sound decision-making process can only be based on reliable and timely
information. Status of Environment (SoE) provides an analysis of the
available information. It aims to provide details on the current status
of the main environmental issues in the different states of India. It
covers a wide range of environment related issues starting from human
settlement, atmosphere, land, water, biodiversity to ecological
sustainable development etc. It provides information on the various
human activities that exert pressure on different environmental
components. Impact of demographic shifts, urban sprawls, growth of the
poor, changes in trends of industrial, commercial, and transport
character, urban economic activities, etc. on air, water, land,
biological environments, environmental health etc. are studied and
analyzed in the report. The report also analyzes responses of the
society, examines policies and strategies initiated under regulatory
mechanisms along with their impacts. Besides, it identifies the
information gaps, and highlights the main policy issues for
decision-makers
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Environment and Energy Management
The word environment depicts a vast area. The protection of the
environment is vital for Sustainable Human Development. Relevant factors
of environment include food, waster, energy, natural resources, toxic
substances etc. Energy is one of the most important factors of
environment. Energy Management is critical to our future economic
prosperity and environmental well being. Energy is essential for the
functioning of most of the industrialized world as well as developing
and under developed nations. Yet at the same time energy production and
consumption causes degradation of the environment of the industrialized
world and it seems that developing countries are also facing the similar
kind of problem. Energy management is one of the most critical issues
for the future as so much of the world is dependent upon it. Thus we
need to understand the traditional sources of energy, their quality,
availability and environmental effects, as well as the potential
alternatives for energy and the effects of these upon the natural
environment and modern industrial economies. Over the past two hundred
years the use of primary energy sources in manufacturing or processing
has evolved from simply using locally available resources, such as
waterpower, firewood or coal. The transition from coal to a
petroleum-based fuel economy took place through the twentieth century.
With changes to the oil market in 2000 catching media attention around
the world, there is further interest in the ongoing transition to
renewable energy sources. Managing energy is now a basic feature in the
global economy and environment. Fossil fuels in the form of oil, natural
gas and coal comprise approximately 80% of the world's energy use. We
now face a world where the environmental impacts of combusting fossil
fuels such as coal and oil are identified as unsustainable in the long
term. The need to turn to increasing use of sustainable and renewable
energy sources is clearly agreed.
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