Global importance for the conservation of biological diversity
The
Western Ghats are internationally recognized as a region of immense
global importance for the conservation of biological diversity, besides
having areas of high geological, cultural and aesthetic values. The
ecosystems of the Western Ghats include the tropical wet evergreen
forests, the montane evergreen forests, moist deciduous forests, etc.
There are over 4,000 species of angiosperms (1500 endemic), 332 species
of butterflies (37 endemic), 288 species of fishes (116 endemic), 156
species of amphibians (94 endemic), 225 species of Reptiles (97
endemic), 508 species of birds (19 endemic) and 137 species of mammals
(14 endemic) reported from Western Ghats.
The Government of India
has taken several steps to conserve the rich biodiversity of the
Western Ghats. A large number of protected areas comprising national
parks, wildlife sanctuaries, tiger reserves and elephant reserves have
been established to provide stringent protection to both flora and
fauna. Nearly 10% of the total area of Western Ghats is currently
covered under the Protected Area category. The largest Protected Area in
Western Ghats is the Bandipur National Park in Karnataka. The Silent
Valley National Park in Kerala and the Kudremukh National Park in
Karnataka are among the important tracts of virgin tropical evergreen
forests in India, serving as the home to a healthy population of the
globally threatened fauna.
The Western Ghats are important from
the standpoint of biodiversity conservation. For the purpose of ensuring
protection of biodiversity of Western Ghats, there are some
restrictions for setting up of industries in certain ecologically
significant areas of Western Ghats, for example, there is a moratorium
upto 31st December 2012 for consideration of projects from Sindhudurg
and Ratnagiri areas of Maharashtra, and for consideration of mining
projects in Goa. There is also a ban on consideration of mining projects
in some districts of Karnataka in compliance of Supreme Court Orders
dated 29 July, 2011 and 26 August, 2011.
The above information
was laid in the Parliament by Minister of State (Independent Charge) for
Environment and Forests Shrimati Jayanthi Natarajan. (
PIB photo)
16-August-2012 16:14 IST