Biodiversity
Biodiversity has
played a major role in shaping India’s history and continues to shape the
region today. India has been granted the title “megadiverse,” meaning that is
one of the world’s 17 countries that hold 70 percent of the world’s
biodiversity (India Biodiversity Portal). The vast amount of different species
played a key role in India’s cultural development. As early as 300 BC, land had
been protected and seen as sacred sites (Broomec). India’s history is shaped by
the protection of sacred lands where deities were thought to dwell (Broomec). The sacred lands were protected and biodiversity flourished in
these areas preserving many species in their original state (Broomec). Some sacred
lands were seen as part of the religious culture of Buddhism and the sites were
said to be part of the Buddha’s journey (Broomec). The practice was so popular
that most regions in India are about ten percent sacred lands spread out
through each region (Broomec). Today, there are regulations that try to further
preserve these lands like the Wildlife (Protaction) Act of 1972. The Wildlife
Act only had two protection areas, nation parks and wildlife sanctuaries, but
in 2002 conservation reserves and community reserves were added to the safety
areas (Broomec). Even with protective measures, biodiversity is threatened
(Broomec). The regulations that have been set do not take into account the
local areas where the protected land is (Brommec). The local areas usually already
had special measures taken to protect the sacred land, but new regulations
ignore these and often make their own rules (Broomec). Also, the new
regulations do not take into account the needs of the local areas and they
restrict the necessary resources that the local group needs (Broomec). Overall,
India has been a biodiversity area and is now in need of a continuous
regulation system that will help preserve the land as well as serve the people
living near the sacred land.
Source:
Biodiversity in India. (n.d) retrieved April 8, 2014, from India Biodiversity Portal Web Site: http://thewesternghats.indiabiodiversity.org/biodiversity_in_india
Neema Pathak Broome, Neema Pathak (December 2011). India's culture of conservation . retrieved April 8, 2014, from infochange Web Site: http://infochangeindia.org/environment/backgrounder/india-s-culture-of-conservation.html
Source:
Biodiversity in India. (n.d) retrieved April 8, 2014, from India Biodiversity Portal Web Site: http://thewesternghats.indiabiodiversity.org/biodiversity_in_india
Neema Pathak Broome, Neema Pathak (December 2011). India's culture of conservation . retrieved April 8, 2014, from infochange Web Site: http://infochangeindia.org/environment/backgrounder/india-s-culture-of-conservation.html
This image shows the amount of different species in India. India is considered a Megadiverse country because it is one of the 17 countries in the world that holds 70% of the world's total biodiversity.
From: http://thewesternghats.indiabiodiversity.org/biodiversity_in_india
From: http://thewesternghats.indiabiodiversity.org/biodiversity_in_india
This image shows the different landscapes of India. The many different climates express the changning environments to foster biodiversity. Section 5 (Western Ghats) is a major site for sacred lands protected by India and is considered a biodiversity "Hot Spot."
Source: http://www.tutorvista.com/content/biology/biology-iv/biodiversity/biodiversity-levels.php#
Source: http://www.tutorvista.com/content/biology/biology-iv/biodiversity/biodiversity-levels.php#