Environment Quiz: Environment Conservation efforts made by government | Nov 28,2020

The Wild Life (Protection) Act (WPA) of 1972 provided for the declaration of National Parks by the State Government in addition to the declaration of wildlife sanctuaries.
•National Parks are declared in areas that are considered to be of adequate ecological, geomorphologic and natural significance although within the law, the difference in conservation value of a National Park from that of a sanctuary is not specified in the WPA 1972.
•National Parks enjoy a greater degree of protection than sanctuaries.
•Certain activities which are regulated in sanctuaries, such as grazing of livestock, are prohibited in National Parks.
Source: Shankar page no: 175

The Chief Wild Life Warden may, on application, grant to any person a permit to enter or reside in a sanctuary/ National Park for all or any of the following purposes:
•investigation or study of wildlife and purposes ancillary or incidental thereto
•photography
•scientific research
•tourism
•transaction of lawful business with any person residing in the sanctuary
Source: Shankar Page no: 176

The Amendment Act (Wildlife Protect Act, 1972) of 2003 provided for the creation of a new type of protected area called a Conservation Reserve.
•It is an area owned by the State Government adjacent to National Parks and sanctuaries for protecting the landscape, seascape and habitat of fauna and flora.
•It is managed through a Conservation Reserve Management Committee
•The State Government may, after having consultations with the local communities, declare any area owned by the Government as conservation reserve.
Source: Shankar Page No: 177

The Bhitarkanika Wildlife Sanctuary (Odisha) is one of India’s biggest estuarine crocodile habitats and a major coastal eco-system.
•It was declared as a National Park because of its ecological, faunal, floral, geomorphological and zoological association and importance and for the purpose of protection in 1998.
•In August 2002, it was designated as the second Ramsar site (i.e. Wetland of International importance).
Source: The Hindu

The prohibited items are not permitted to be exported. An export licence will not be given in the normal course for goods in the prohibited category. The following are the items probited in the flora and fauna category:
•All wild animals, animal articles including their products and derivatives (excluding those for which ownership certificates have been granted and also those required for transactions for education, scientific research and management under Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972 including their parts and products).
•Beef of cows, oxen and calf. Beef in the form of offal of cows, oxen and calf
•Meat of buffalo (both male and female) fresh and chilled and frozen
•Peacock Tail Feathers & its Handicrafts and articles
•Shavings & Manufactured Articles of shavings of Shed Antlers of Chital and Sambhar
•Sea shells
•Wood and wood products
•Fuel wood
Source: Shankar Page No: 179

Biosphere Reserve (BR) is an international designation by UNESCO for representative parts of natural and cultural landscapes extending over large area of terrestrial or coastal/marine ecosystems or a combination thereof.
•BRs are special environments for both people and the nature and are living examples of how human beings and nature can co-exist while respecting each others’ needs.
•Biosphere reserves are sites established by countries and recognized under UNESCO’s Man and the Biosphere (MAB) Programme to promote sustainable development based on local community efforts and sound science.
Source: Shankar Page no: 180

A potential example of conservation of a highly endangered species is the Indian Tiger (Panthera tigris).
•The fall and rise in the number of Tiger population in India is an index of the extent and nature of conservation efforts.
•It is estimated that India had about 40 000 tigers in 1900, and the number declined to a mere about 1800 in 1972.
•The tiger tally in the country stands at 2,967. The tiger population in the country has grown from 1,400 in 2014 to 2,967 in 2019.
•The State Government shall, on recommendation of the National Tiger Conservation Authority, notify an area as a tiger reserve.
Source: Shankar page no: 187 and The Hindu

The scientific name for the tiger is Panthera tigris.
•There are eight subspecies of tiger: among the eight, at present five subspecies are present in the wild.
•They are – Bengal, South China, Indochinese, Sumatran, and Siberian.
•Three subspecies of tiger—Caspian, Bali, and Javan—are extinct.
Source: Shankar page no: 187

The process of estimating the number of tigers in a given area is called ‘Tiger census.’
•This exercise provides us with an estimate of tiger number, density and change in tiger indices – a measure of tiger occupancy in a given area.
•It is conducted at regular intervals to know the current tiger populations and population trends.
•Besides estimating the number of tigers the method also helps to gather information on the density of the tiger populations and associated prey.
•The most commonly used technique in the past was ‘Pugmark Census Technique’.
•In this method the imprints of the pugmark of the tiger were recorded and used as a basis for identification of individuals.
•Now it is largely used as one of the indices of tiger occurrence and relative abundance.
Source: Shankar page no: 188

Nagarjunsagar-Srisailam Tiger Reserve is the largest tiger reserve in India.
•The reserve spreads over five districts, Kurnool District, Prakasam District, Guntur District of Andhra Pradesh and Nalgonda District and Mahbubnagar district of Telangana state.
•The total area of the tiger reserve is 3,728 km².
Source: ENVIS