UNESCO World Heritage tag and the need for maintaining a “plant corridor” to save the original species and vegetation of Western Ghats from destruction
Two senior biological scientists said [in August 2012] that people of the State should support Unesco’s World Heritage Site tag to the Western Ghats to save the ghats from further destruction.
In a chat with The Hindu at Pilikula Nisargadhama here, M. Sanjappa, former Director, Botanical Survey of India, and R.R. Rao, former head, National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow. and currently serving as a scientist with the Indian National Science Academy, said that only the vested interests opposed the tag. Mr. Sanjappa said many plant species would not survive if the long range of the ghats was fragmented. Like an “elephant corridor”, there was a “plant corridor”. If the “plant corridor” was broken, many species would disappear. Hence, it was important to ensure that the range was not broken. He said some vested interested had launched a “negative campaign” against the tag. Mr. Sanjappa said the ghats had been listed as one of the few biodiversity hotspots in the world not only because it had a rich biodiversity but also for the destructive activities happening there. […]
Mr. Rao said that the ghats had been listed as “hottest hotspot” because a majority of original species and vegetation had disappeared from there. There were only nine “hottest hotspots” in the world. “We should support the World Heritage tag. Status quo should be maintained,” he said. […]
Find up-to-date information provided by, for and about Indian authors, researchers, officials, and educators | More search options >> Search tips: in the search field seen below, combine the name of any particular state, language or region with that of any tribal (Adivasi) community; add keywords of special interest (health, nutrition endangered language, illegal mining, sacred grove); learn about the rights of Scheduled Tribes such as the Forest Rights Act (FRA); and the United NationsDeclaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Universal Declaration of Human Rights, women’s rights, and children’s right to education; specify any other issue or news item you want to learn more about (biodiversity, climate change, ecology, economic development, ethnobotany, ethnomedicine, global warming, effective measures to prevent rural poverty, bonded labour, and human trafficking).
For a list of websites included in a single search, click here. To search Indian periodicals, magazines, web portals and other sources safely, click here. To find an Indian PhD thesis on a particular tribal community, region and related issues, click here >>
[Bold typeface added above for emphasis]
For additional learning resources visit the website of the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), “a public interest research and advocacy organisation based in New Delhi”:
Communication for Awareness CSE’s publications and informational products have been its strength and they have always combined research and readability to get the message across.
CSE’s tools for awareness raising are periodicals, publications, films/short spots, briefing papers, exhibitions, posters and other products. CSE’s informational products reach people in more diverse ways such as features service, website and e-news bulletins. […]
