Order of the National Green Tribunal in the matter of R.D. Singh Bandral Vs Union of India & Others dated 17/04/2023. The matter related to protecting the flora and fauna of the Kailash Kund-Seoz Dhar region by declaring the same as protected area and not to allow construction of the …
If one were to make a fleeting visit to an Indian city, the sight that would first greet the eyes would be a sky-scraping cluster of cement, with a pinch of green. With home gardens being the prerogative of a privileged few, most middle class homes are adorned with at …
the deciduous plant mahua is one of the most important flora species of Orissa. It is also found in Jharkhand, Chattisgarh, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. Its flowers are valued across the country for brewing a local liquor, which is called mahuli in Oriya. Its fruits are eaten …
A thermal power plant (TPP) is threatening to snuff out the 100-year-old livelihood of farmers in Maharashtra's Dahanu taluka. It is alleged that pollution from the unit has led to a steady decline in the quality and quantity of chikoo (sapota) production. The TPP, run by Reliance Energy (formerly Bombay …
god's own country is on the brink of a biodiversity disaster. A third of Kerala's flora and fauna faces the threat of extinction by 2030 due to the high density of human population. This grim scenario is depicted in the state planning board's Economic Review, 2003. The report observes that …
Last year, a cricketing row broke out between New Zealand and India, when a member of the Indian team was fined for carrying soiled shoes. For India, it was cricketing pride at stake. But New Zealand customs authorities were merely following quarantine regulations. The shoes could have carried a possible …
What are the various methods of managing invasive weeds? The government generally comes to know about invasive weeds 10-15 years after they are introduced. By then, they are already spread over wide areas and their extinction becomes impossible. The only thing that can make a difference is the people's awareness. …
How easy is it to predict the potential of a plant to become invasive in a new habitat? When an alien species, be it a pest or a weed gets into another habitat, there is generally a time lag before it becomes invasive. Its introduction, as such is sudden and …
What are the modes of successful invasiveness? There have been some studies on recruitment of pollinators by lantana. When lantana invades as an invasive species into a native ecosystemit proliferates and increases its density and biomass. Consequently, there is a chance that it usurps the native pollinators from the native …
function alien2() { var popurl="image/20040229/30-illus.jpg" winpops=window.open(popurl,"","width=475,height=450,scrollbars=yes") } "A successful invasion is a rare event,' says Suresh Babu, a researcher at the School of Environmental Studies, University of Delhi. An accepted thumbrule is that only one in 10 introduced species become naturalised, and only one in 10 among the latter actually …
70 years ago, a species called the yellow crazy ant (Anoplolepis gracilipes) turned up at the Christmas Islands off Australia, perhaps stuck to a piece of timber. For a long time, it remained dormant. Then in the mid 1990s, its population began to explode. Yellow crazy ants began to form …
with efforts to combat global warming doddering, the rising temperatures may lead to the extinction of as many as 380 animal and plant species. These are the findings of an international team of researchers, who used global warming projections for 2050 to assess extinction risk for species found in areas …
Cacti are prickly, and pleasing. Extremely ungainly, they flourish in arid conditions where no plant will survive. Succulent inside, their thick coats and nettles ensure predators cannot get to the sap inside, sap the plants literally collect in drops off the moisture in the air. They are economically useful, and …
the multimillion-dollar trade in herbal medicines is threatening numerous plant species, as per a report of the World Wide Fund for Nature (wwf). "At least 4,000 to 10,000 plants are endangered. With demand increasing drastically, the future of these species is now more uncertain than ever before,' says Alan Hamilton, …
myristica swamps are one of the most unique ecosystems in the Western Ghats. They are called so as they mainly harbour species of the Myristicaceae family of flowering plants that provide nutmegs. Unfortunately, due to human activities, the swamps are today highly fragmented and hence threatened. Subhas Chandran, a lecturer …
Kait or kath-bel belongs to the bel variety of fruit-bearing trees. It is called wood apple, curd fruit, elephant apple or monkey fruit in English and as Feronia elephantum or Feronia limonia in the scientific dictum. A native of South-East Asia, it now mainly grows in the dry plains of …
Is traditional medicine the answer to the healthcare needs of the state? In rural areas, traditional medicine is the major healthcare option. It is well respected, as western medicine system is non-existent in far-flung places. Even otherwise, traditional and modern practitioners participate equally in providing healthcare. Our medicines are highly …
indian scientists have digitally mapped rich flora spread over an area of about 84,000 square kilometres of thick forest. The first phase of this exercise was conducted in the biodiversity hotspots of the northeast, western Himalaya and Western Ghats with the aid of state-of-the-art satellite technology. The digital mapping project …
The Andaman and Nicobar islands (a&n) are thought to be the emergent peaks of a submerged mountain range related to the Arakan Yoma range of mainland Burma. The islands include steep hills, and generally poor soil with little water holding capacity. Flat terrain is extremely limited and the larger islands …
healing power: An Indian research team has been granted the rights to develop the curative potential of jamun (black plum fruit). The team has obtained a US patent on a compound extracted from jamun, which reduces blood sugar levels. The compound will be developed to produce a "herbal therapeutic product …
Breakthroughs in biotechnology may finally resolve the quest for the elusive blue rose, which alas does not exist because the flower lacks the required pigment genes. At us-based Vanderbilt University's school of medicine, scientists studying how drugs metabolise in the liver, stumbled across a human enzyme that may hold the …
