Under the plan of 3 June, more than 562 princely states were given the option of joining either India or Pakistan, or choosing independence. Indian nationalists and large segments of the public feared that if these states did not accede, most of the people and territory would be fragmented. The Congress as well as senior British officials considered Patel the best man for the task of achieving unification of the princely states with the Indian dominion.

Patel asked v.p.menon a senior civil servant with whom he had worked over the partition of India to become his right-hand as chief secretary of the States Ministry. On 6 May 1947, Patel began lobbying the princes, attempting to make them receptive towards dialogue with the future Government and trying to forestall potential conflicts. Patel used social meetings and unofficial surroundings to engage most monarchs, inviting them to lunch and tea at his Home in Delhi At these meetings, Patel stated that there was no inherent conflict between the Congress and the princely order. Nonetheless, he stressed that the princes would need to accede to India in good faith by 15 August 1947.

Patel invoked the patriotism of India’s monarchs, asking them to join in the freedom of their nation and act as responsible rulers who cared about the future of their people. He persuaded the princes of 565 states of the impossibility of independence from the Indian republic, especially in the presence of growing opposition from their subjects.

He proposed favorable terms for the merger, including creation of privy purses for the descendants of the rulers. While encouraging the rulers to act with patriotism, Patel did not rule out force, setting . deadline of 15 August 1947 for them to sign the instrument of accession document. All but three of the states willingly merged into the Indian union—only Jammu and Kashmir, junagadh and Hyderabad did not fall into basket.

Integration of Junagadh: The West Gujarat known as Saurastra constituted a number of small states which did not have much potential from the point of view of economic and political independence. In all, 327 such States existed in Gujarat. Sardar succeeded in bringing the small states together and it was a very important step towards national solidarity although the states were in theory free to choose whether they wished to accede to India or Pakistan, Mountbatten had pointed out that “geographic compulsions” meant that most of them must choose India.

In effect, he took the position that only the states that shared a border with Pakistan could choose to accede to it. The Nawab of Junagadh, a princely state located on the south-western end of Gujarat and having no common border with Pakistan, chose to accede to Pakistan ignoring Mountbatten’s views, arguing that it could be reached from Pakistan by sea. The rulers of two states that were subject to the suzerainty of Junagadh— Mangrol and Babariawad—reacted to this by declaring their independence from Junagadh and acceding to India. In response, the Nawab of Junagadh militarily occupied the states. The rulers of neighboring states reacted angrily, sending their troops to the Junagadh frontier and appealed to the Government of India for assistance.

A group of Junagadhi people, led by Samaldas Gandhi, formed a government-in-exile, the Aarzi Hukumat (“temporary government”). India believed that if Junagadh was permitted to go to Pakistan, the communal tension already simmering in Gujarat would worsen, and refused to accept the accession. The government pointed out that the state was 80% Hindu, and called for a plebiscite to decide the question of accession. Simultaneously, they cut off supplies of fuel and coal to Junagadh, severed air and postal links, sent troops to the frontier, and reoccupied the principalities of Mangrol and Babariawad that had acceded to India.

Pakistan agreed to discuss a plebiscite, subject to the withdrawal of Indian troops, a condition India rejected. On 26 October, the Nawab and his family fled to Pakistan following clashes with Indian troops. On 7 November, Junagadh’s court, facing collapse, invited the Government of India to take over the State’s administration. The Government of India agreed.

A plebiscite was conducted in February 1948, which went almost unanimously in favour of accession to India.

Kashmir conflict: Kashmir was also a problem. At the time of the transfer of power, Kashmir was ruled by Maharaja Hari Singh, a Hindu, although the state itself had a Muslim majority. Hari Singh was equally hesitant about acceding to either India or Pakistan, as either would have provoked adverse reactions in parts of his kingdom. He signed a Standstill Agreement with Pakistan and proposed one with India as well, but announced that Kashmir intended to remain independent. However, his rule was opposed by Sheikh Abdullah, the popular leader of Kashmir’s largest political party, the National Conference, who demanded his abdication.

Pakistan, attempting to force the issue of Kashmir’s accession, cut off supplies and transport links. The chaos in Punjab resulting from Partition had also severed transport links with India, meaning that Kashmir’s only links with the two dominions was by air. Rumours about atrocities against the Muslim Population of Poonch by the Maharajah’s forces caused the outbreak of civil unrest. Shortly thereafter, Pathan tribesmen from the North-West Frontier Province of Pakistan crossed the border and entered Kashmir. The invaders made rapid progress towards Srinagar. The Maharaja of Kashmir wrote to India, asking for military assistance.

India required the signing of an Instrument of Accession and setting up an interim government headed by Sheikh Abdullah in return. The Maharaja complied, but Nehru declared that it would have to be confirmed by a plebiscite, although there was no legal requirement to seek such confirmation. Indian troops secured Jammu, Srinagar and the valley itself during the First Kashmir War, but the intense fighting flagged with the onset of winter, which made much of the state impassable.

Prime Minister Nehru, recognizing the degree of international attention brought to bear on the dispute, declared a ceasefire and sought UN arbitration, arguing that India would otherwise have to invade Pakistan itself, in view of its failure to stop the tribal incursions. The plebiscite was never held, and on 26 January 1950, the Constitution of India came into force in Kashmir, but with special provisions made for the state. India did not, however, secure administrative control over all of Kashmir. The northern and western portions of Kashmir came under Pakistan’s control in 1947, and are today Pakistan-administered Kashmir. In the 1962 Sino-Indian War, China occupied Aksai Chin.

Hyderabad Operation Polo: Sardar’s greatest role in the integration of states was his able handling of the Hyderabad crisis. Most of the states acceded to India, Hyderabad was a landlocked state that stretched over 82,000 square miles (over 212,000 square kilometres) in southeastern India. While 87% of its 17 million people were Hindu, its ruler Nizam Osman Ali Khan was a Muslim, and its politics were dominated by a Muslim elite. The Muslim nobility and the Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen, a powerful pro-Nizam Muslim party, insisted Hyderabad remain independent and stand on an equal footing to India and Pakistan. Accordingly, the Nizam in June 1947 issued a firman announcing that on the transfer of power, his state would be resuming independence. The situation deteriorated further in 1948. The Razakars (“volunteers”), a militia affiliated to the Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen and set up under the influence of Muslim radical Qasim Razvi, assumed the role of supporting the Muslim ruling class against upsurges by the Hindu populace, and began intensifying its activities and was accused of attempting to intimidate villages.

The Hyderabad State Congress Party, affiliated to the Indian National Congress, launched a political agitation. Matters were made worse by communist groups, which had originally supported the Congress but now switched sides and began attacking Congress groups. Attempts by Mountbatten to find a negotiated solution failed and, in August, the Nizam, claiming that he feared an imminent invasion, attempted to approach the UN Security Council and the International Court of .

India  now insisted that if Hyderabad was allowed to continue its independence, the prestige of the Government would be tarnished and then neither Hindus nor Muslims would feel secure in its realm. The date for the attack was fixed as 13 September, even though General Sir Roy Bucher, the Indian chief of staff, had objected on grounds that Hyderabad would be an additional front for the Indian army after Kashmir.

On 13 September, the Indian Army was sent into Hyderabad under Operation Polo on the grounds that the law and order situation there threatened the peace of South India. The troops met little resistance and between 13 and 18 September took complete control of the state. The Nizam was retained as the head of state in the same manner as the other princes who acceded to India.He thereupon disavowed the complaints that had been made to the UN and, despite vehement protests from Pakistan and strong criticism from other countries, the Security Council did not deal further with the question, and Hyderabad was absorbed into India.

Other States: Regarding the accession of the other states, Sardar acted like a magic-stick. In no time, he could merge the States of Orissa, Chhatishgarh, Rajasthan, Punjab and so on. He realized that the people of states were supreme and by organizing the States’, people for establishment of popular government, he could achieve success. He had, with him, able workers and supporters who had worked untiringly to bring such a merger in record time. There are innumerable instances where Sardar could bring down the rulers of the States to terms and agree them to accession to India as per the terms and conditions stipulated by the Government of India. Sardar had to deal with diversified Kings having different Attitude with caution and applying varied, human, social, political and psychological approach.

 

 

Introduction

• India’s missile programme took a shot from space programme, beginning 1967.
• In 1972, Rohini- a 560 two-stage, solid propulsion sounding rocket was developed and test fired
• India first launched its small 17-tonne SLV-3 space booster in 1979
• India successfully injected the 35 kg Rohini I satellite into near-earth orbit in 1980.
• In 1987, an augmented booster, the 35-tonne ASLV had begun flight testing.
• In 1983 a decisive shift took place in India’s missile program with the launch of the Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP) The principal aim was to develop a family of strategic and tactical guided missiles based on local design and development for three DEFENCE Services.

Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme

The Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP) was conceived by renowned scientist DR.A P J Abdul Kalam to enable Indian Attain self-sufficiency in the filed of Missile Technology.

 

Prithvi

• The Prithvi missile is a family of tactical surface-to-surface short-range ballistic missiles(SRBM) and is
• India’s first indigenously developed ballistic missile.
• it was first test-fired on 25 February 1988 from Sriharikota, SHAR Centre,
• It has a range of up to 150 to 300 km.
• The land variant is called Prithvi while the naval operational variant of Prithvi I and Prithvi II class missiles are code named Dhanush(meaning Bow).

Agni

Surface to surface intercontinetal ballistic missile.

Agni-I is a single stage, solid fuel, road and rail mobile, medium-range ballistic missiles (MRBM) This shorter ranger missile is specially designed to strike targets in Pakistan.

Agni II is an operational version of Agni I and is an intermediate range ballistic missile (IRBM) test-fired in April 1999.

The range for Agni II is more than 2000 km.

Agni III, an intermediate-range ballistic missile was developed by India as the successor to Agni II. Intended to be a two-stage ballistic missile capable of nuclear weapons delivery, it is touted as India’s nuclear deterrent against China. The missile is likely to support a wide range of warhead configurations, with a 3,500 km range and a total payload weight of 2490 kg.

Agni V, believed to be an upgraded version of the Agni III The inter-continental ballistic missile  have a range of about 5000-6000 km . Agni V will be able to carry multiple warheads and would also display countermeasures against anti-ballistic missile systems.

 

Trishul

Trishul is the name of a short range surface-to-air missile developed by India as a part of the Integrated Guided Missile Development Program. It has a range of 9 km and is fitted with a 5.5 kg warhead. Designed to be used against low-level (sea skimming) targets at short range, the system has been developed to defend naval vessels against missiles and also as a short-range surface-to-air missile on land.

 

Akash

Akash is a medium range surface-to-air missile developed as part of India’s Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme to achieve self-sufficiency in the area of surface-to-air missiles. It is the most expensive missile project ever undertaken by the Union Government in the 20th century.

 

Nag

Nag is India’s third generation “Fire-and-forget” anti-tank missile. It is an all weather, top attack missile with a range of 3 to 7 km.

 

Other Missiles

Significant additions also include

 

PINAKA– the Multi-Barrel Rocket System , an area weapon system to supplement the existing artillery gun at ranges beyond 30 km, having quick reaction time and high rate of fire has been accepted by the user after extensive trials.

 

BrahMos-  being jointly developed with Russia, is a supersonic cruise missile that can be launched from submarines, ships, aircraft or land.

BrahMos is among the fastest supersonic cruise missiles in the world, at speeds ranging between Mach 2.5 to 2.8, being about three and a half times faster than the American subsonic Tomahawk cruise missile. Although BrahMos is primarily an anti-ship missile, it is also capable of engaging land-based targets.

 

Nirbhay- cruise missile  was announced in 2007—a subsonic missile with a range of 1000 km. Capable of being launched from multiple platforms on land, sea and air. Nirbhay will supplement BrahMos in the sense that it would enable delivery of warheads farther than the 300 km range of BrahMos.

In 2008, New Delhi announced the end of the IGMDP with the focus now shifting towards serial production of missiles developed under this programme.

 

Shaurya– a landbased variant of the K-15 Sagarika which can be stored in underground silos for longer time and can be launched using gas canisters as booster was successfully test-fired in November 2008. This nuclear-capable missile aims to enhance India’s second-strike Sagarika missile is being integrated with India’s nuclearpowered Arihant class submarine that began sea trials in July 2009.

 

Dhanush– which has been tested several times in recent years believed to be a short-range, sea-based, liquid-propellant ballistic missile—perhaps a naval variant of the Prithvi series, with a maximum range of approximately 300 km.

 

Air-to-air missile Astra– It is an air to air missile Beyond Range (BVR). This is the first indigenous air-to-air missile developed by India. The range of this missile is 80 km in head-on chase and 15 km in tail chase.

 

Ballistic Missile Defence system

Two interceptor missiles, the Prithivi air defence missile and the Advanced Air Defence (Ashwin) missile are designed to provide a high-low cover against incoming ballistic missiles. Prithivi is reported to be capable of intercepting missiles at exo-atmospheric altitudes of 50 – 80km, while the AAD is designed to operate at endo-atmospheric altitudes of upto 30kms.

 

It would be apposite to conclude by stating that India’s missile programme represents an iconic image demonstrating and self-reliance vis-à-vis its technological achievements. Resultant of nearly three decades of research, India’s guided missile programme has assumed a self-sustaining character and become fundamentally crucial to New Delhi’s proposed minimal deterrent.

 

Classification-of-town-and-problem-of-human-settlement”>FUNCTIONAL CLASSIFICATION OF TOWN AND PROBLEM OF HUMAN SETTLEMENT

The definition of function varies across the disciplines. In political science it refers to duties, in mathematics it means the relationship between two variables and in Geography it is synonymous to occupation.

Geographers have classified towns on the basis of their site, situation, size, rank, location and relative elevation. Functional classification of towns attempts to categorize towns and cities according to their economic functions, thereby identifying their roles within urban systems. Most classifications use EMPLOYMENT and occupational data. In the functional classification approach, towns are classified on the basis of their dominant function. The functional classification of towns has been illus­trated in the following paras:

1.)Administrative town

The main function of administrative cities and towns is to administer the country/state or a specific territory.It includes not only the capital cities of countries, but all the centres of provinces, states, districts and other administrative divisions of the country.

2.Defensive Towns:

During the medieval period, most of the towns and cities used to be developed on the defensive sites.Forts and garrisons used to be constructed at strategic places. The defensive towns have barracks, cantonments, and training facilities for the armed forces, airfields, and harbours for warships.Visakhapatnam, MHOW and Khadakwasla (India);

In many garrison and defensive towns, there is a clear division of land use between the civil and military authorities, so that the military installa­tions are often at a little distance from the town or are grouped together in one part of the town. This is necessary to maintain security, though often many town people are employed by the military.

3.Cultural Centres:

There are numerous towns and cities in the world, almost in each of the countries, which perform cultural functions.The cities of Oxford and Cambridge in England are the most suitable examples of educational towns. In these towns, one may find colleges, libraries, hostels, churches, playgrounds, parks and shopping centres. The environmental pollution in these towns is almost insignificant.

4.) Collection Centres:

The mining towns, fishing and lumbering centres fall under the category of collection centres/towns. There are numerous metallic, non-metallics, precious stones and energy Resources which are obtained from mines.The towns which serve these mines may be small settlements serving a particular mine such as Zawar near Udaipur (Rajasthan), Bjiladela (Madhya Pradesh) and Digboi (Assam).They may be large in size such as Raniganj, Hazaribagh (Bihar), Ipoh in the tin rich Kinta valley of Malaysia, or Kuwait and Abadan in the oil producing regions of Kuwait and Tehran, respectively.Such towns may have some industries related to the mineral mines, such as smelters and refineries. The shops in such towns sell mining equipments and special clothes needed for miners.

5.) Production Centres:

Urban places, town and cities in which some kind of manufacturing Industry is the major function is known as a production centre. The size and appearance of the town are affected by the type of industry located there.

• For example, Jamshedpur, Rourkela, Bhilai, Durgapur, Dhanbad and Bhadravati in India, Pittsburgh in USA, Magnitogorsk in Russia and Birmingham in UK are dominated by large steel Plants. Such iron and steel producing towns are generally located near the coal fields.
• For the manufacturing towns, as collecting centres, transportation is very important for the transport of raw materials and the finished goods. These days such towns are generally set up on lines of Communication.

In manufacturing towns, there is a segregation of houses and estab­lishments; the officer’s quarters may be grouped at one place and that of the labourers at the other.

6.) Towns of Diversified Functions:

As stated at the outset, towns are classified according to their major functions. So, all those towns (such as Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, etc.) can be put into a definite category in which a large number of activities are conducted. Such towns are referred as diversified in functions.

Over space and time, the functions of towns change. For example, defensive sites often become restrictive when the town expands.Thus, many towns have restricted centres which were once confined within the town walls and more extensive suburbs which grew up outside the walls or after the walls were demolished.

Shahjahanabad (old Delhi), Padova (Italy), Lahore and Rawalpindi (Pakistan), Baghdad (Iraq) and Baku (Azerbaijan) are some of the examples of such towns.

7.)Residential Towns:

In some towns, the chief function is simply to house a concentration of Population. In such areas, most of the land is devoted to houses, parks and hospitals. These towns are very- well-connected with the major cities, which enables the commuters to get to work each day.

8.  Resorts:

The urban places which cater to the recreation needs of people are known as resorts or recreation towns.These urban places may be based on Health-giving water (hot springs), seaside recreation, mountain climbing, cultural attractions, historical monuments, Sports facilities, national parks and attractive scenery.Resorts and recreational towns have many hotels to accommodate visitors, and also provide sporting facilities such as golf courses, swimming pools, trekking and skiing. Moreover, they have numerous entertainment facilities, such as theatres, cinemas, and night clubs and children parks.

9. Transfer and Distribution Centres:

The main functions performed at transfer centres are the trade, commerce and Services. Towns which are concerned with the transfer and distribution of goods, however, have trade as their major function.

They include several types of towns. For example, market towns, sea ports and financial towns.Market towns are characterized by markets, a wide range of shops, stores, warehouses, godowns, cold storages and wholesale .markets.Market towns also have banks, Insurance companies and other financial organizations. Kanpur, Ahmedabad, Vadodara, Indore, Bhopal, Patna, Lucknow, Ludhiana and Hapur in India, Norwich in England, Alexandria in Egypt, and Kumasi in Ghana are some of the examples of such towns.

 

Problem of Human settlement:

Some of the major problems of Urbanisation in India are

1. Urban Sprawl

Urban sprawl or real expansion of the cities, both in population and geographical area, of rapidly growing cities is the root cause of urban problems. In most cities the economic base is incapable of dealing with the problems created by their excessive size

2. Overcrowding

Overcrowding is a situation in which too many people live in too little space. Overcrowding is a logical consequence of over-population in urban areas. It is naturally expected that cities having a large size of population squeezed in a small space must suffer from overcrowding. This is well exhibited by almost all the big cities of India.

 

3.Slums and Squatter Settlements:

The natural sequel of unchecked, unplanned and haphazard Growth of urban areas is the growth and spread of slums and squatter settlements which present a striking feature in the ecological structure of Indian cities, especially of metropolitan centres.

 

4.)Overcrowding

Overcrowding leads to a chronic problem of shortage of houses in urban areas. This problem is specifically more acute in those urban areas where there is large influx of unemployed or underemployed immigrants who have no place to live in when they enter cities/towns from the surrounding areas.

5.)Seweage problem

Urban areas in India are almost invariably plagued with insufficient and inefficient sewage facilities. Not a single city in India is fully sewered. Resource crunch faced by the municipalities and unauthorised growth of the cities are two major causes of this pathetic state of affairs.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Formation Of Linguistic States:–

India is a land of many languages, each with its distinct script, grammar, vocabulary and literary tradition. In 1917, the Congress Party had committed itself to the creation of linguistic provinces in a Free India. After Congress’s Nagpur Session in 1920, the principle was extended and formalized with the creation of provincial Congress Committee by linguistic zones.

The linguistic reorganization of the Congress was encouraged and supported by Mahatma Gandhi. After the bitter partition on the basis of religion the then PM Nehru was apprehensive of dividing country further on the basis of language.

During that time some Marathi speaking Congress members raised the pitches for separate Maharashtra State. Following this demand, other language speaking people too demands a separate state for them. Hence, Constituent Assembly in 1948 appointed the Linguistic Provinces Commission, headed by Justice S.K. Dhar, to enquire into the desirability of linguistic provinces.

The Dhar Commission advised against this at that time reason being it might threaten national unity and also be administratively inconvenient.

JVP Committee

After some time the clamor for linguistic states again got momentum. To appease the vocal votaries of linguistic states, the congress appoints a committee (JVP) in December 1948 consisting of Nehru, Sardar Patel and Pattabhi Sitaramayya to examine the question afresh. This JVP Committee revoked the seal of approval that the congress has once put on the principle of linguistic provinces.

The demands for separate state on the linguistic basis didn’t subside. There were renewed movements aimed at linguistic autonomy in 1948, 1949. There was the campaign for Samyukta Karnataka, uniting Kannada speaking spread across the states of Madras, Mysore, Bombay, Hyderabad, Samyukta Maharashtra, Maha Gujarat movement. In case of Punjab, struggle brought together both the factors language and religion (Sikh).

Andhra Movement

After Independence, the speakers of Telugu asked the congress to implement its old resolution in favour of linguistic states.

On 19 October 1952, a popular freedom fighter, Potti Sriramulu undertook a fast unto death over the demand for a separate Andhra and expired after fifty-eight days. After his death people were agitated and it was followed by rioting, demonstrations, hartals and violence all over Andhra. The Vishalandhra movement (as the movement for a separate Andhra was called) turned violent. Finally, the then PM, Nehru announced the formation of a separate Andhra State in December 1952.

State Reorganization Commission

The Formation Of Andhra Pradesh spurred the struggle for making of other states on linguistic lines in other parts of the country.

Hence Nehru appointed in August 1953 the states Reorganisation Commission (SRC) with justice Fazl Ali, K.M. Panikkar and Hridaynath Kunzru as members, to examine “objectively and dispassionately” the entire question of the reorganization of the states of the Union. The SRC submitted its report in October 1955. It recognized for the most part on the linguistic principle and recommended redrawing of state boundaries on that basis.

The then government accepted the SRC’s recommendations. Finally, the states Reorganization Act was passed by parliament in November 1956. It provided for fourteen states and six centrally administered territories. SRC opposed the splitting of Bombay & Punjab.

Case of Bombay

Therefore, the strongest reaction against SRC’s report came from Maharashtra, where widespread rioting took place. To fulfill their demand of separate Marathi speaking people’s state, there was the broad based Samyukta Maharashtra Samiti and on the other hand in Bombay state, there was Maha Gujarat Janata Parishad led the movement for Gujarati people.

After on years of the Reorganization of States Act, the government finally agreed in May 1960, the bifurcate the state of Bombay into Maharashtra, Gujarat with Bombay city being included in Maharashtra and Ahmedabad being made the capital of Gujarat.

Case of Punjab

The other state where an exception was made to the linguistic principle was Punjab. In 1956, the state of PEPSU had been merged with Punjab, which remained a trilingual state having three language speakers-Punjab, Hindu and Pahari within its border. In the Punjabi speaking part of the state, there was a strong demand for carving out a separate Punjabi Suba (Punjabi Speaking State). This demand got communal overtones. The Akali Dal led Sikh Communalists, while the Jan Sangh, led Hindu communalists.

SRC had rejected the demands in Punjab, as it would not solve either the language or the communal problem of Punjab. Finally in 1966, Indira Gandhi agreed to the division of Punjab into two Punjabi and Hindi speaking status of Punjab and Haryana, with the Pahari speaking district of Kangra and a port of the Hoshiarpur district being merged with HP.

Finally, after more than ten years of continuous strife and popular struggles, the linguistic reorganization of India was largely completed

Forests – Natural Vegetation of India

 

Table of Contents

• Classification-of-natural-vegetation-of-india/#forests-natural-vegetation-of-india”>1Forests – Natural Vegetation of India
• 2Classification of Natural Vegetation of India
• 3Moist Tropical Forests
  • 1Tropical Wet Evergreen Forests or Rain Forests
  • 2Tropical Semi-Evergreen Forests
  • 3Tropical Moist Deciduous Forests
  • 4Littoral and Swamp Forests
• 4Dry Tropical Forests
  • 1Tropical Dry Evergreen Forests
    • 1.1Casuarina plantation
  • 2Tropical Dry Deciduous Forests
  • 3Tropical Thorn Forests
• 5Montane Sub-Tropical Forests
  • 1Sub-tropical Broad-leaved Hill Forests
  • 2Sub-tropical Moist Pine Forests
  • 3Sub-tropical Dry Evergreen Forests
• 6Montane Temperate Forests
  • 1Montane Wet Temperate Forests
  • 2Himalayan Moist Temperate Forests
  • 3Himalayan Dry Temperate Forests
• 7Alpine Forests

Forests – Natural Vegetation of India:Types and distribution

types

• Climate, and topographyare the major factors that influence Natural Vegetation of a place.
• The main climatic factors arerainfall and temperature. The amount of annual rainfall has a great bearing on the type of vegetation.

Annual Rainfall	Type of Vegetation
200 cm or more	Evergreen Rain Forests
100 to 200 cm	Monsoon Deciduous Forests
50 to 100 cm	Drier Deciduous or Tropical Savanna
25 to 50 cm	Dry Thorny Scrub (Semi-arid)
Below 25 cm	Desert (Arid)

• Temperature is the major factor in Himalayas and other hilly regions with an elevation of more than 900 metres.
• As the temperature falls with altitude in the Himalayan region the vegetal cover changes with altitude fromtropical to sub-tropical, temperate and finally alpine.
• Soil is an equally determining factor in few regions.Mangrove forests, swamp forests are some of the examples where soil is the major factor.
• Topography is responsible for certain minor types e.g.alpine Flora, tidal forests, etc..

Classification of Natural Vegetation of India

• Classification of Natural Vegetation of India is primarily based on spatial and annual variations in rainfall. Temperature, soil and topography are also considered.
• India’s vegetation can be divided into 5 main types and 16 sub-types as given below.

A. Moist Tropical Forests

• Tropical Wet Evergreen
• Tropical Semi-Evergreen
• Tropical Moist Deciduous
• Littoral and Swamp

B. Dry Tropical Forests

• Tropical Dry Evergreen
• Tropical Dry Deciduous
• Tropical Thorn

C. Montane Sub-tropical Forests

• Sub-tropical broad leaved hill
• Sub-tropical moist hill (pine)
• Sub-tropical dry evergreen

D. Montane Temperate Forests

• Montane Wet Temperate
• Himalayan Moist Temperate
• Himalayan Dry Temperate

E. Alpine Forests

• Sub-Alpine
• Moist Alpine scrub
• Dry Alpine scrub

Forest Type in India	% of Total Area
Tropical Moist Deciduous	37
Tropical Dry Deciduous	28
Tropical Wet Evergreen	8
Sub-Tropical Moist Hill	6
Tropical Semi-Evergreen	4
Rest below 4 %

Moist Tropical Forests

Tropical Wet Evergreen Forests or Rain Forests

Climatic Conditions

• Annual rainfall exceeds 250 cm
• The annual temperature is about 25°-27°C
• The Average annual humidity exceeds 77 per cent and
• The dry season is distinctly short.

Characteristics

• Evergreen: Due to high heat and high humidity, the trees of these forests do not shed their leaves together.
• Mesosphytic:Plants adopted to neither too dry nor too wet type climate.

What are mesophytes? ·         Unlike hydrophytic plants, such as water lily or pondweed, that grow in saturated soil or water, or xerophytic plants, such as cactus, that grow in extremely dry soil, mesophytes are ordinary plants that exist between the two extremes. ·         Mesophytic environments are marked by average to hot temperatures and soil that is neither too dry nor too wet.

• Lofty: The trees often reach 45 – 60 metres in height.
• Thick Canopy: From the air, the tropical rain forest appears like a thick canopy of foliage, broken only where it is crossed by large rivers or cleared for cultivation.
• All plants struggle upwards (mostephiphytes) for sunlight resulting in a peculiar layer arrangement. The entire morphology looks like a green carpet when viewed from above.

• Less undergrowth: The sun Light cannot reach the ground due to thick canopy. The undergrowth is formed mainly of bamboos, ferns, climbers, orchids, etc.

Distribution

• Western side of the Western Ghats (500 to 1370 metres above sea level).
• Some regions in the Purvanchal hills.
• In the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

Timber

• Hardwood: The timber of these forests is fine-grained, hard and durable.
• It has high commercial value but it is highly challenging to exploit dueto dense undergrowth, absence of pure stands and lack of transport facilities [Read previous posts on Climatic regions to understand how lumbering Industry works in Equatorial Rainforests (hardwood) and Taiga Climatic (softwood) conditions].
• The important species of these forests aremahogany, mesua, white cedar, jamun, canes, bamboo 

Tropical Semi-Evergreen Forests

• They are transitional forests between tropical wet evergreen forests and tropical deciduous forests.
• They are comparatively drier areas compared to tropical wet evergreen forests.

Climatic Conditions

• Annual rainfall is 200-250 cm
• Mean annual temperature varies from 24°C to 27°C
• The relative humidity is about 75 per cent
• The dry season is not short like in tropical evergreen forests.

Distribution

• Western coast
• Assam
• Lower slopes of the Eastern Himalayas
• Odisha and

Characteristics

• The semi-evergreen forests are less dense.
• They are moregregarious [living in flocks or colonies – more pure stands] than the wet evergreen forests.
• These forests are characterized by many species.
• Trees usually havebuttressed trunks with abundant epiphytes.

Buttressed Trunks

• The important species are laurel, rosewood, mesua, thorny bamboo – Western Ghats, white cedar, Indian chestnut, champa, mango, etc. – Himalayan region.

Timber

• Hardwood: Similar to that in tropical evergreen forests except that these forests are less dense withmore pure stands (timber industry here is better than in evergreen forests).

Tropical Moist Deciduous Forests

Climatic Conditions

• Annual rainfall 100 to 200 cm.
• Mean annual temperature of about 27°C
• The average annual relative humidity of 60 to 75 per cent.
• Spring (between winter and summer) and summer are dry.

Characteristics

• The trees drop their leaves during the spring and early summer when sufficient moisture is not available.
• The general appearance is bare in extreme summers (April-May).
• Tropical moist deciduous forests present irregular top storey [25 to 60 m].
• Heavily buttressed trees and fairly complete undergrowth.
• These forests occupy a much larger area than the evergreen forests but large tracts under these forests have been cleared for cultivation.

Distribution

• Belt running along the Western Ghats surrounding the belt of evergreen forests.
• A strip along the Shiwalik range including terai and bhabar from 77° E to 88° E.
• Manipur and Mizoram.
• Hills of eastern Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh.
• Chota Nagpur Plateau.
• Most of Odisha.
• Parts of West Bengal and
• Andaman and Nicobar islands.

Timber

• These provide valuable timer like
• The main species found in these forests are teak, sal, laurel, rosewood, amla, jamun, bamboo, etc.
• It iscomparatively easy to exploit these forests due to their high degree of gregariousness (more pure stands).

Littoral and Swamp Forests

• They can survive and grow both in fresh as well asbrackish water(The mixture of seawater and fresh water in estuaries is called brackish water and its salinity can range from 0.5 to 35 ppt).
• Occur in and around the deltas, estuaries and creeks prone totidal influences (delta or tidal forests).
• Littoral (relating to or on the shore of the sea or a lake) forests occur at several places along the coast.
• Swamp forests are confined to the deltas of the Ganga, the Mahanadi, the Godavari, the Krishna and the Cauvery.
• Dense MANGROVES occur all along the coastline in sheltered estuaries, tidal creeks, backwaters, salt marshes and mudflats. It provides useful fuel wood.
• The most pronounced and the densest is theSunderban in the Ganga delta where the predominant species is Sundri (Heriteera).

Timber

• It provides hard and durable timber which is used for construction, building purposes and making boats.
• The important species found in these forests are Sundri, agar, rhizophora, screw pines, canes and palms, etc.

Dry Tropical Forests

Tropical Dry Evergreen Forests

Distribution

• Along the coasts of Tamil Nadu.

Climatic Conditions

• Annual rainfall of 100 cm [mostly from the north-east Monsoon Winds in October – December].
• Mean annual temperature is about 28°C.
• The mean humidity is about 75 per cent.
• The Growth of evergreen forests in areas of such low rainfall is a bit strange.

Characteristics

• Short statured trees, up to 12 m high, with complete canopy.
• Bamboos and Grasses not conspicuous.
• The important species are jamun, tamarind, neem, etc.
• Most of the land under these forests has been cleared for Agriculture-notes-for-state-psc-exams”>Agriculture orcasuarina plantations.

Casuarina plantation ·         It resembles feathery conifer in general appearance. ·         They are rapid-growing, carefree species for sites and climates as varied as coastal sand dunes, high mountain slopes, hot humid tropics, and semi-arid regions. ·         They have the ability to fix atmospheric nitrogen. It grows 15 to 25 metres in height on an average. · · · Casuarina plantation Distribution ·         Casuarina is the most popular Forestry“>Farm forestry in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Odisha, Maharashtra, Gujarat, and Karnataka. Benefits ·         Reduces damage in the event of natural calamities. ·         Line planting in the coastal areas helps in controlling the wind force. ·         It is also used for tourism promotion in view of its ornamental appearance. ·         It provides top quality firewood. ·         The wood is suitable for paper pulp and useful raw material for the manufacture of paper for writing, printing, and wrapping. ·         It is got some serious medicinal values as well. Wasteland development ·         The characteristics which make it a suitable species for wasteland development include adaptability to wide range of habitats, fast growth, salt tolerant, drought resistant, ability to reclaim land and stabilize sand dunes. ·         Intercrops such as groundnut, cucumber, watermelons, sesamum, and pulses can also be raised along with the plantation.

Tropical Dry Deciduous Forests

Climatic Conditions

• Annual rainfall is 100-150 cm.

Characteristics

• These are similar to moist deciduous forests and shed their leaves in dry season.
• The major difference is that they can grow in areas of comparatively less rainfall.
• They represent a transitional type – moist deciduous on the wetter side and thorn forests on the drier side.
• They have closed but uneven canopy.
• The forests are composed of a mixture of a few species of Deciduous trees rising up to a height of 20 metres.
• Undergrowth: Enough light reaches the ground to permit the growth of grass and climbers.

Distribution

• They occur in an irregular wide strip running from the foot of the Himalayas to Kanniyakumari except in Rajasthan, Western Ghats and West Bengal.
• The important species are teak, axlewood, rosewood, common bamboo,red sanders, laurel, satinwood, etc.
• Large tracts of this forest have been cleared for agricultural purposes.
• These forests have suffer from over grazing, fire, etc.

Tropical Thorn Forests

Climatic Conditions

• Annual rainfall less than 75 cm.
• Humidity is less than 50 per cent.
• Mean temperature is 25°-30°C.

Characteristics

• The trees are low (6 to 10 metres maximum) and widely scattered.
• Acacias and Euphorbias are very prominent.
• The Indian wild date is common. Some grasses also grow in the rainy season.

Distribution

• Rajasthan, south-western Punjab, western Haryana, Kachchh and neighbouring parts of Saurashtra.
• Here they degenerate into desert type in the Thar desert.
• Such forests also grow on the leeside of the Western Ghats covering large areas of Maharashtra, Karnataka, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.
• The important species are neem, babul, cactii, etc.

Montane Sub-Tropical Forests

Sub-tropical Broad-leaved Hill Forests

Climatic conditions

• Mean annual rainfall is 75 cm to 125 cm.
• Average annual temperature is 18°-21°C.
• Humidity is 80 per cent.

Distribution

• Eastern Himalayas to the east of 88°E longitude at altitudes varying from 1000 to 2000 m.

Characteristics

• Forests of evergreen species.
• Commonly found species are evergreen oaks, chestnuts, ash, beech, sals and pines.
• Climbers and epiphytes [a plant that grows non-parasitically on a tree or other plant] are common.
• These forests are not so distinct in the southern parts of the country. They occur only in the Nilgiri and Palni hills at 1070-1525 metres above sea level.
• It is a “stunted rain-forest” and is not so luxuriant as the true tropical evergreen.
• The higher parts of the Western Ghats such as Mahabaleshwar, the summits of the Satpura and the Maikal Range, highlands of Bastar and Mt. Abu in the Aravali Range carry sub-types of these forests.

Sub-tropical Moist Pine Forests

Distribution

• Western Himalayas between 73°E and 88°E longitudes at elevations between 1000 to 2000 metres above sea level.
• Some hilly regions of Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Naga Hills and Khasi Hills.

Timber

• Chir or Chilis the most dominant tree which forms pure stands.
• It providesvaluable timber for furniture, boxes and buildings.
• It is also used for producing resin and turpentine.

Sub-tropical Dry Evergreen Forests

Distribution

• Found in the Bhabar, the Shiwaliks and the western Himalayas up to about 1000 metres above sea level.

Climatic Conditions

• Annual rainfall is 50-100 cm (15 to 25 cm in December-March).
• The summers are sufficiently hot and winters are very cold.

Characteristics

• Low scrub forest with small evergreen stunted trees and shrubs.
• Olive, acacia modesta and pistacia are the most predominant species.

Montane Temperate Forests

Montane Wet Temperate Forests

Climatic Conditions

• Grows at a height of 1800 to 3000 m above sea level
• Mean annual rainfall is 150 cm to 300 cm
• Mean annual temperature is about 11°C to 14°C and the
• Average relative humidity is over 80 per cent.

Distribution

• Higher hills of Tamil Nadu and Kerala, in the Eastern Himalayan region.

Characteristics

• These are closed evergreen forests. Trunks have large girth.
• Branches are clothed with mosses, ferns and other epiphytes.
• The trees rarely achieve a height of more than 6 metres.
• Deodar, Chilauni, Indian chestnut, birch, plum, machilus, cinnamomum, litsea, magnolia, blue pine, oak, hemlock, etc. are important species.

Himalayan Moist Temperate Forests

Climatic Conditions

• Annual rainfall varies from 150 cm to 250 cm

Distribution

• Occurs in the temperate zone of the Himalayas between 1500 and 3300 metres.
• Cover the entire length of this mountain range in Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Darjeeling and Sikkim.

Characteristics

• Mainly composed ofconiferous species.
• Species occur in mostly pure strands.
• Trees are 30 to 50 m high.
• Pines, cedars, silver firs, spruce, etc. are most important trees.
• They form high but fairly open forest with shrubby undergrowth including oaks, rhododendrons and some bamboos.

Timber

• It provides fine wood which is of much use for construction, timber and RAILWAY sleepers.

Himalayan Dry Temperate Forests

Climatic Conditions

• Precipitation is below 100 cm and is mostly in the form of snow.

Characteristics

• Coniferous forests with xerophytic shrubs in which deodar, oak, ash, olive, etc are the main trees.

Distribution

• Such forests are found in the inner dry ranges of the Himalayas where south-west monsoon is very feeble.
• Such areas are in Ladakh, Lahul, Chamba, Kinnaur, Garhwal and Sikkim.

Alpine Forests

• Altitudes ranging between 2,900 to 3,500.
• These forests can be divided into: (1) sub-alpine; (2) moist alpine scrub and (3) dry alpine scrub.
• The sub-alpine forests occur lower alpine scrub and grasslands.
• It is a mixture of coniferous and broad-leaved trees in which the coniferous trees attain a height of about 30 m while the broad leaved trees reach only 10 m.
• Fir, spruce, rhododendron, etc. are important species.
• The moist alpine scrub is a low evergreen dense growth of rhododendron, birch etc. which occurs from 3,000 metres and extends upto
• The dry alpine scrub is the uppermost limit of scrub xerophytic, dwarf shrubs, over 3,500 metres above sea level and found in dry zone. Juniper, honeysuckle, artemesia etc. are important species.

Sources of Energy: Conventional and Nonconventional Sources –

Energy is one of the most important component of economic .

It is the basic input required to sustain economic Growth. There is direct relation between the level of Economic Development and per capita energy consumption.

Simply speaking more developed a country, higher is the per capita consumption of energy and vice-versa. India’s per capita consumption of energy is only one eighth of global Average. This indicates that our country has low rate of per capita consumption of energy as compared to developed countries.

Two Main Sources of Energy:

The sources of energy are of following types:

 

 

 

 

 

 (A) Conventional Energy Sources:

The energy sources which cannot be compensated, once these are used (after their exploitation) are termed as conventional energy sources.

Some important conventional energy sources are discussed below:

1. Coal:

Coal is a major conventional energy sources. It was formed from the remains of the trees and ferns grew in swamps around 500 millions year ago. The bacterial and chemical decomposition of such plant debris (which remained buried under water or clay) produced an intermediate product known as peat which is mainly cellulose (C₆H₁₀O₅)_n. Due to progressive decomposition by heat and pressure, the cellulose lost moisture H₂ and O_z and got converted in to coal as per the given equation

The average formula of coal is (C_3/H_4/)_n. Out of the 6000 billion tons coal stocks under earth crust, 200 tons have been exploited the present Society. The coal reserves are found in the states like Jharkhand, Orissa, West Bengal, M.P. and A.P. Some important coal fields are :Talcher, Raniganj, Jharia, Bokaro, PanchKonkam, Signoulli, Chanda etc.

2. Petroleum and natural gases:

Petroleum is a complex mixture of hydrocarbons, mostly alkanes and cycloalkanes. It occurs below the earth crust entrapped under rocky strata. In its crude form, the viscous black liquid is known as petroleum and a gas in contact with petroleum layer which flows naturally from oil wells is termed as natural gases. The composition of natural gas is a mixture of mainly methane, (95.0%), small amounts of ethane, propane and butane (3.6%) and traces of CO₂ (0.48%) and N₂ (1.92%).

A liquid mixture of propane and butane can be obtained from natural gas or refinery gases at room temperature under a pressure of 3-5 Atmosphere. This is stored and distributed in 40-100 litre capacity steel cylinders.

The crude petroleum after being refined and purified, are available as petrol, diesel, kerosene, lubricating oil, plastic etc. for commercial and domestic use. In India, the oil deposits, are found at Ganga-Brahmaputra Valley, Bombay high, plains of Gujarat, Thardesert of Rajasthan and area around Andaman Nicobar islands.

On the world basis, petroleum deposits are found at Saudi Arab, Iraq, Iran, Kuwait, USA, Mexico, Russia etc. As per the current survey, it is found that world petroleum deposits are diminishing at a very faster rate. If preventive steps are not taken, the existing petroleum will be available maximum up to 40 years.

3. Fuel woods:

The rural peoples require fuel wood or fire Wood for their day to day cooking which are obtained from natural forests and plantations. Due to rapid deforestation, the availability of fire wood or fuel wood becomes difficult. This problem can be avoided by massive afforestation (plantation) on degraded forest land, culturable waste land, barren land grazing land etc.

4. Hydropower:

Energy obtainable from water flow or water falling from a higher potential to lower potential, is known is hydro- power. It is a conventional and renewable form of energy which can be transmitted to long distance through cables and wires.

In India, hydroelectric power is generated by a number of multipurpose river valley projects e.g. Hydro-power project Hirakud, BhakraMangal project, Narmada valley project, NagarjunSagar project, SardarSarovar project etc.

5. Nuclear Energy:

A small amount of radioactive substance (U²³⁵) can produce a lot of energy through the process of nuclear fission. For example, one ton of uranium can provide energy which is much higher than three million tons of coal or 12 million barrels of oil. In order to obtain nuclear energy, Nuclear Reactors are required. There are around 300 nuclear reactors all over the world. India has only four nuclear power stations (reactors).

The nuclear energy can be used in production of electrical energy, as a fuel for marine vessel and space crafts and for the generation of heat in chemical processing Plants. In India, Uranium deposits are found at different parts of Rajasthan and Singhbum of Jharkhand.

Thorium is recovered from monazite sand found in the state of Kerala. Due to the higher energy releasing tendency of these radioactive substances, these can be used in nuclear reactors to release Energy Crisis. But the radioactive substances are exhaustible and can be used to develop nuclear weapons of mass destruction. In addition, dumping or radioactive wastes cause serious environmental hazards.

(B) Non conventional energy sources:

The conventional energy sources discussed above are exhaust­ible and in some cases, installation of plants to get energy is highly expensive. In order to meet the energy demand of increased popu­lation, the scientists developed alternate nonconventional Resources“>Natural Resources sources of energy which should be renewable and provide a pol­lution free Environment.

Some nonconventional, renewable and inexpensive energy sources are described below:

1. Solar Energy:

Solar energy, a primary energy source, is non-polluting and inexhaustible.

There are three methods to harness solar energy:

(i) Converting solar energy directly into electrical energy in solar power stations using photo cells or photovoltaic cells or silicon solar cell.

(ii) Using photosynthetic and biological process for energy trapping. In the process of Photosynthesis, green plants absorb solar energy and convert it into chemical energy, stored in the form of carbohydrate.

(iii) Converting solar energy in to thermal energy by suitable devices which may be subsequently converted into mechanical, chemical or electrical energy.

Since solar energy is non-ending and its conversion to some other energy form is nonpolluting, attention should be paid for the maximum utilization of solar energy.

2. Wind Energy:

Wind is air in motion. The movement of air takes place due to the convection current set out in the atmosphere which is again due to heating of earth’s surface by solar radiation, ROTATION OF EARTH etc. The movement of air occurs both horizontally and vertically.

The average annual wind density is 3 kW/m²/day along costal lines of Gujarat, western ghat central parts of India which may show a seasonal variation (i.e., in winter it may go up to 10kW/m²/day).]

Since wind has a tremendous amount of energy, its energy can be converted into mechanical or electrical energy using suitable devices, now days, wind energy s converted in to electrical energy which is subsequently used for pumping water, grinding of corns etc. As per available data dearly 20,000 mW of electricity can be generated from wind. In Puri, wind farms are set up which can generate 550 kW of electricity.

3. Tidal energy:

The energy associated with the tides of the Ocean can be converted in to electrical energy. France constructed the first tidal power plant in 1966. India could take up Ocean Thermal Energy conversion (OTEC) and by the process it will be capable of generating 50,000 mW of electricity, to meet the power requirements of remote oceanic islands and coastal towns. The Netherlands is famous for windmills. In India, Gujarat and Tamil nadu have windmills. The largest Wind farm has been set at Kanyakumari which generates 380 mW of electricity.

4. Geothermal Energy:

The geothermal energy may be defined as the heat energy obtainable from hot rocks present inside the earth crust. At the deeper region of earth crust, the solid rock gets melted in to magma, due to very high temperature. The magma layer is pushed up due to some geological changes and get concentrated below the earth crust. The places of hot magma concentration at fairly less depth are known as hot spots.

These hot spots are known as sources of geothermal energy. Now a days, efforts are being made to use this energy for generating power and creating refrigeration etc. There are a quite few number of methods of harnessing geothermal energy. Different sites of geothermal energy generation are Puga (Ladakh), Tattapani (Suraguja, M.P.), Cambay Basin (Alkananda Valley, Uttaranchal).

5. Bio-mass based energy:

The organic matters originated from living organisms (plants and animals) like wood, cattle dung, sewage, agricultural wastes etc. are called as Biomass. These substances can be burnt to produce heat energy which can be used in the generation of electricity. Thus, the energy produced from the biomass is known as biomass energy.

There are three forms of biomass:

(i) Biomass in traditional form:

Energy is released by direct burning of biomass (e.g. wood, agricultural residue etc.)

(ii) Biomass in nontraditional form:

The biomass may be converted in to some other form of fuel which can release energy. For example carbohydrate can be converted into methanol or ethanol which may be used as a liquid fuel.

(iii) Biomass for domestic use:

When organic matters like cow dung, agricultural wastes, human excreta etc. subjected to bacterial decomposition in presence of water in absence of air, a mixture of CH₄, C0₂, H₂, H₂S etc. is produced. These gases together is known as biogas. The residue left after the removal of biogas is a good source of manure and biogas is used as a good source of non-polluting fuel.

6. Biogas:

Biogas is an important Source Of Energy to meet energy, requirements of rural area. As per given data, around 22,420-million m³ of gas can be produced from the large amount of cow dungs obtained in rural areas in a year. The gas is generated by the action of bacteria on cow dung in absence of air (Oxygen). There are two types of biogas plants namely. Fixed done type and floating gas holder type .

These plants are commonly known as Gobar gas plants because the usual raw material is cow dung (Gobar). The methodology involves in the process is to prepare a slurry of cow dung with water. Sometimes form waters can also be added to the slurry.

The slurry is subjected to bacterial decomposition at 35 .C. There are about 330, 00 biogas plants in India. All India dung production is about 11.30 kg per cattle and 11.60 kg per buffalo with about 67.10 m³ of gas per ton of wet dung.

 

7. Petro plants:

In order to release the pressure on mineral oils (a nonrenewable resource), the scientists have discovered some potential plant species from which liquid hydrocarbons can be extracted. The liquid hydrocarbons present in such plants can be converted in to petroleum.

Such plants are known as petro plants which belong to families Apocynaceae, Ascalepiadaceae, Euphrobiaceae; Convolvulaceae and Spontaceae. Still research is on to increase the biomass of the petro plants and effective method of converting their hydrocarbons in petroleum.

8. Dendrothermal energy (Energy plantation):

Due to rapid deforestation and overgrazing, a number of denuded wastelands are formed. On these wastelands, fast growing trees and shrubs may be planted which will provide fuel wood, charcoal, fodder, etc. Through gasification, these plants can produce a lot of energy-

9. Baggasse-based plants:

Bagggasse is generated as a waste product in sugar mills. This can be utilised to produce electrical energy. As per available data, the sugar mills in India can generate about 2000 mW surplus electricity during crushing season.

10. Energy from urban waste:

Sewage and solid municipal wastes can also generate energy on their suitable treatments.

 

 

 

Development of Hindi and Urdu Language

 

Hindi and Urdu are two Hindustani Languages; spoken mostly in the northern and Central India and in Pakistan.

Hindi and Urdu are two different languages but these languages have many common things.Both Hindi and Urdu are developed in a similar phase and adopted many changes.

We will discuss about the development of both the languages one by one.

 

Development of Hindi:

Hindi in Khariboli form has been accepted as officiallanguage of India. It is written in Devnagari script. It is listed in the 22 scheduled in our Constitution.

Hindi is one of the youngest languages of India which come in literary only before 2-3 centuries back.

Hindi is 4^ththe most speaking languages of the world after Mandarin, Spanish and English.

Now we will dig deep to find the foundation of Hindi language. Hindi is an Indo-Aryan Language which find its root in various Prakrit languages in India. There were various Prakrit was being spoken in various regions of  like Magadhi, ArdhaMagadhi, Himalayan Prakrit, ShaurseniPrakrit etc.

This was around 500-600 century than these Prakritwere developed in their regions under the patron of their rulers. Although Sanskrit was used as official Communication and for literary works, yet regional languages were the languages of the masses.

 

 

Hindi language was originally calledHindvi. It started taking shape around 10^th century. It was mostly spoken in the present day Delhi. It was highly influenced by the ShaurseniAprabhansha.

The vocabulary is derived mostly from the Sanskrit Language.

We can divide the development of Hindi language in 3 stages for our understanding:

1. Early Stages
2. Middle Stage

• Modern Stage

 

1. Early Stage: This was the making time of Hindi when it was finding its root in regional Prakrit. The time can be considered form 5^th century to 1300 AD. In this time

 

1. Middle Stage: We can mark this time from 14^th century to 1800 Century. In this stage various saints and other poet wrote which was the basis of Modern day Hindi. Kabir, Ramananda, Tulsidas, Gurunanak, Meerabai , Amir Khusrau had much impact on this.

 

 

• Modern Stage: This was the time when Hindi language developed fully. A lot of development happened during this time from grammar to modern novel writing. A lot of writers and scholars have done a lot for the development of Hindi. BharatenduHarishchandra also known as father of Modern Hindi Literature; did a lot for the development of Hindi and to shape it in standardized form.

 

 

 

Development of Urdu:

The early HISTORY of Hindi and Urdu is almost same. The invasion of foreigner from western part of India from Middle East brought many changes in the Indian people. The changes was not only in culture, lifestyle but was in the language as well. The invaders patronized Persian and Arabic form of languages;which influenced the local languages and vice-versa.

Urdu is also a Hindustani language which found its origin in various other languages. Urdu is mostly spoken in the northern parts of India and is Official Language of some states of India. After the partition of India, Urdu was accepted as national language of Pakistan.

Urdu is developedfrom the medieval Apabhramsa of Shaurseni.

Shaurseni is an Indo-Aryan language that is also the ancestor of other modern languages, including the Punjabi and Hindi dialects.

Around 99% of Urdu verbs have their roots in Sanskrit and Prakrit.

Urdu developed under the influence of the Persian and Arabic languages, both of which have contributed a significant amount of vocabulary to formal speech.

 

The development of Urdu can be summarized in three stages:

1. Early Stage
2. Middle Stage

• Modern Stage

 

1. Early Stage: The early stage of Hindi and Urdu is almost same where it was finding its source in regional Prakrit languages. Invaders of Muslim rulers from West also brought development to initial stages. This period can be marked from 500-1300 AD.

 

1. Middle Stage: With the upcoming of Muslims rulers from west in India Persian language become prominent. Persian language itself has its roots in Arabic language. Urdu was influenced by the Perso-Arabic language duo and marked its tremendous development. Period: 1400AD -1800 AD

 

 

• Modern stage: British had played important role in developing Modern day Urdu language. Persian was the official language of many ruler’s court, British were not happy with this and they tried developing Urdu to counter Persian language. Modern writers also played an important role in development of Urdu language.

 

 

 

Conventional and Non Conventional Sources of Energy

Main Sources of Energy:

The sources of energy are of following types:

1. Conventional Sources of Energy:

These sources of energy are also called non renewable sources. These sources of energy are in limited quantity except hydro-electric power.

(a) Coal and Lignite:

Coal is the major Source Of Energy. Coal deposits in India are 148790 million tonnes. Total lignite reserves found at Neyveli are 3300 million tonnes. In 1950-51, annual production of coal was 32 million tonnes. In 2005-06, annual production of coal was 343 million tonnes.

Lignite production was 20.44 million tonnes in 2005-06. According to an estimate, coal reserves in India would last about 130 years. India is now the fourth largest coal producing country in the world. Coal deposits are mainly found in Orissa, Bihar, Bengal and Madhya Pradesh. It provides EMPLOYMENT to 7 lakh workers.

(b) Oil and Natural Gas:

In India it is found in upper Assam, Mumbai High and in Gujarat. The Resources of oil are small in India.

In 1950-51, the total production of oil in India was 0.3 million tonnes. It increased to 32.4 million tonnes in 2000-01. Despite tremendous increase in oil production.India still imports 70% of has oil requirements from abroad. In 1951, there was only one oil refinery in Assam.

After independence 13 such refineries were set up in public sector and their refining capacity was 604 lakh tonnes. After implementation of Economic Reforms, private refineries are also engaged in oil refining. As per current rate of consumption, oil reserves in India may last about 20 to 25 years.

Electricity

There are three main sources of power generation:

1. Thermal Power
2. Hydro-electric power
3. Nuclear Power
4. Thermal Power:

It is generated in India at various power stations with the help of coal and oil. It has been a major source of electric power. In 2004-05, its share in total installed capacity was 70 percent.

2. Hydro electric Power:

It is produced by constructing Dams over overflowing rivers. For example BhakraNangal Project, Damodor Valley Project and Hirakund Project etc. In 1950-51, installed capacity of hydro-electricity was 587.4 MW and in 2004-05, it was 19600 MW.

3. Nuclear Power:

India has also developed nuclear power. Nuclear Power Plants use uranium as fuel. This fuel is cheaper than coal. India has nuclear power plants at Tarapur, Kota (Rajasthan) Kalapakam (Chennai) Naroura (UP). Its supply accounts for only 3 percent of the total installed capacity.

POWER FROM NON CONVENTIONAL ENERGY

India is one of the fastest growing countries in terms of energy consumption. Currently, it is the fifth largest consumer of energy in the world, and will be the third largest by 2030. At the same time; the country is heavily dependent on fossil sources of energy for most of its demand. This has necessitated the country to start aggressively pursuing alternative energy sources – solar, wind, biofuels, small hydro and more.

India‘s wind power potential has been assessed at 48500 MW. The current technical potential is estimated at about 13 000 MW, assuming 20% grid penetration, which would increase with the augmentation of grid capacity in potential states. The state-wise gross and technical potentials are given below India is implementing the world’s largest wind resource assessment program comprising wind monitoring, wind mapping and complex terrain projects.

1. Hydro Energy

Hydro Power is the largest RENEWABLE ENERGY resource being used for the generation of electricity. The 50,000 MW hydro initiatives have been already launched and are being vigorously pursued with DPRs for projects of 33,000 MW capacity already under preparation. Harnessing hydro potential speedily will also facilitate Economic Development of States, particularly North-Eastern States, Sikkim, Uttaranchal, Himachal Pradesh and J&K, since a large proportion of our hydro power potential islocated in these States. In India, hydro power projects with a station capacity of up to 25 megawatt (MW) each fall under the category of small hydro power (SHP).

1. Solar Energy

India is a solar rich country. India is a country near the equator – which means that given its geographical location, it is subject to a large amount of solar radiation throughout the year. India is also, according to area, the 7th largest country in the world.

The Average solar radiation received by most parts of India range from about 4 to 7 kilowatt hours per meter square per day, with about 250-300 sunny days in a year. As can be seen from the solar radiation map above, the highest annual solar radiation is received by Rajasthan (desert area) and the lowest by the North eastern states of India.

1. Biomass energy

Globally, India is in the fourth position in generating power through biomass and with a huge potential, is poised to become a world leader in the utilization of biomass. Biomass power projects with an aggregate capacity of 773.3 MW through over 100 projects have been installed in the country. For the last 15 years, biomass power has become an Industry attracting annual Investment of over Rs. 1,000 billion, generating more than 09 billion unit of electricity per year. More than 540 million tons of crop and plantation residues are produced every year in India and a large portion is either wasted, or used inefficiently.

69. E) Energy from Wastes: The rising piles of garbage in urban areas caused by rapid Urbanization and industrialization throughout India represent another source of nonconventional energy. An estimated 50 million tones of solid waste and approximately 6,000 million cubic meters of liquid waste are generated annually in the urban areas of India. Good potential exists for generating approximately 2,600 MW of power from urban and municipal wastes and approximately 1,300 MW from industrial wastes in India. A total of 48 projects with aggregate capacity of about 69.62 MWeq have been installed in the country thereby utilising only 1.8% of the potential that exists.
70. F) Biofuels: The GOI recently mandated the blending of 10 percent fuel ethanol in 90 percent gasoline. This mandate as created an approximately 3.6 billionliter demand for fuel ethanol in blend mandate to the entire country. This significant demand Growth creates a tremendous manufacturing opportunity for the fuel ethanol industry seeking to expand its investments internationally

 

 

 

Climatic Regions of India : Koeppen’s Classification
Climate Type	Climatic Region	Annual Rainfall in the Region
Amw (Monsoon type with shorter dry winter season)	Western coastal region, south of Mumbai	over 300 cm
As (Monsoon type with dry season in high sun period)	Coromandel coast = Coastal Nadu and adjoining areas of Andhra Pradesh	75 – 100 cm [wet winters, dry summers]
Aw (Tropical Savanah type)	Most parts of the peninsular plateau barring Coromandel and Malabar coastal strips	75 cm
BShw (Semi-arid Steppe type)	Some rain shadow areas of Western Ghats, large part of Rajasthan and contiguous areas of Haryana and Gujarat	12 to 25 cm
BWhw (Hot desert type)	Most of western Rajasthan	less than 12 cm
Cwg (Monsoon type with dry winters)	Most parts of the Ganga Plain, eastern Rajasthan, Assam and in Malwa Plateau	100 – 200 cm
Dfc (Cold, Humid winters type with shorter summer)	Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh and parts of Assam	~200 cm
Et (Tundra Type)	Mountain areas of Uttarakhand The Average temperature varies from 0 to 10°C	Rainfall varies from year to year.
E (Polar Type)	Higher areas of Jammu & Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh in which the temperature of the warmest month varies from 0° to 10°C	Precipitation occurs in the form of snow

 

 

 

 

 

 

Climatic Regions of India :Trewartha’s Classification

 

Climate Type	Climatic Region	Other CliamaticCondtions
Am (Tropical Rain Forest)	Western coastal region, Sahayadris and parts of Assam	200 cm annual rainfall  & 18.2 C to 29 C temperature
Aw (Tropical Savanna)	Peninsular India except the semi arid zone	150 cm annual rainfall &  18 C-32 C temperature
Aw (Tropical Savanah type)	Most parts of the peninsular plateau barring Coromandel and Malabar coastal strips	75 cm
BS (Semi-arid Steppe type)	Runs southwards from central Maharashtra to Tamilnadu, Andhra Pradesh	40-75 cm annual rainfall & 20-32 C temperature
BSh (Tropical and subtropical Steppe)	Ranges from Punjab to Kutch	Annual temperature 35 C & 30-60 cm annual rainfall
BWh (Tropical Desert)	Western parts of Barmer, Jaiselmer and Bikaner and parts of Kutch	Annual Temperature 35 C & annual rainfall 25 cm
Caw (Humid Subtropical Climate with dry winters)	It ranges from Punjab to Assam	Rainfall from 100-150 cm
H (Mountain Climate)	Mountain areas of Himalayas including Jammu & Kashmir, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh	The average temperature varies from 0 to 10°C.

 

 

What is a Biosphere Reserve?

A Biosphere Reserve is a special ecosystem or a specialized Environment with a https://exam.pscnotes.com/flora”>Flora and Fauna that require protection and nurturing. These reserves are managed and studied for the conservation of various life forms found here. They are subjects of scientific and natural interest.

According to UNESCO, “Biosphere reserves are areas of terrestrial and coastal Ecosystems promoting solutions to reconcile the conservation of Biodiversity with its sustainable use. They are internationally recognized, nominated by national governments and remain under sovereign jurisdiction of the states where they are located”.

In 1971, UNESCO launched a global programme to formalize the scientific interaction between man and his natural environment. This programme is called the Man and the Biosphere Programme (MAB).  Some 120 countries have joined in by establishing 669 biosphere reserves, including 16 transboundary reserves connected by the Network-of-biosphere-reserves”>World Network of Biosphere Reserves. The MAB is a worthy initiative aimed at conserving the ECOLOGY and environment which is essential to the very survival of many rare and dying species of flora and fauna. India, with its rich treasure trove of biodiversity, is geographically ideal for establishing, cultivating and maintaining a variety of biosphere reserves.

Biosphere Reserves in India

The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate-change”>Climate Change, Government of India defines Biosphere Reserves thus – “Biosphere Reserves (BRs) are representative parts of natural and cultural landscapes extending over large area of terrestrial or coastal/marine ecosystems or a combination thereof and representative examples of bio-geographic zones/province”. The Government of India has established about 18 different Biosphere Reserves in the country. Of these, 10 are part of the World Network of Biosphere Reserves, set up under the auspices of the UNESCO Man and Biosphere (MAB) Programme. Not only are animals protected in the Biosphere Reserves of our country but the natural lifestyle of the indigenous people is also promoted. The communities in these regions are encouraged to retain their agrarian lifestyle and develop harmony with the Plants and animals. The Biosphere Reserves Of India correspond roughly to the IUCN Category V Protected Areas list and are often designed to include one or more national parks and national sanctuaries. The buffer zones of these Biosphere Reserves are open to economic activities as well.

 

 

2. Criteria for designation of BR

• A site that must contain an effectively protected and minimally disturbed core area of value of nature conservation.
• The core area should be typical of a bio-geographical unit and large enough to sustain viable populations representing all trophic levels in the ecosystem.
• The management authority to ensure the involvement/cooperation of local communities to bring variety of knowledge and experiences to link Biodiversity conservation and  socio-Economic Development while managing and containing the conflicts.
• Areas potential for preservation of traditional tribal or rural modes of living for harmonious use of environment.

Vision

The World Network of Biosphere Reserves of the MAB Programme consists of a dynamic and interactive network of sites of excellence. It fosters the harmonious integration of people and nature for Sustainable Development through participatory dialogue; knowledge sharing; POVERTY reduction and human well-being improvements; respect for cultural values and Society’s ability to cope with change – thus contributing to the Millenium Development Goals. Accordingly, the WNBR is one of the main international tools to develop and implement sustainable development approaches in a wide array of contexts.

Mission

To ensure environmental, economic and social (including cultural and spiritual) sustainability through:

1. The development and coordination of a worldwide network of places acting as demonstration areas and Learning sites with the aim of maintaining and developing ecological and cultural diversity, and securing ecosystem Services for human well-being;
2. The development and integration of knowledge, including science, to advance our understanding of interactions between people and the rest of nature;
3. Building global capacity for the management of complex socio-ecological systems, particularly through encouraging greater dialogue at the science-policy interface; environmental Education; and multi-media outreach to the wider community.

 

3. International Status of Biosphere Reserves (BR)

The UNESCO has introduced the designation ‘Biosphere Reserve’ for natural areas to minimize conflict between development and conservation. BRs are nominated by national government which meet a minimal set of criteria and adhere to minimal set of conditions for inclusion in the world network of Biosphere reserves under the Man and Biosphere Reserve Programme of UNESCO. Globally 621 BRs representing from 117 countries included in the network so far.

 

4. Structure and functions of BR:

Biosphere reserves are demarcated into following 3 inter-related zones:

Core Zone

Core zone must contain suitable habitat for numerous plant and animal species, including higher order predators and may contain centres of endemism. Core areas often conserve the wild relatives of economic species and also represent important genetic reservoirs having exceptional scientific interest. A core zone being National Park or Sanctuary/protected/regulated mostly under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972. Whilst realizing that perturbation is an ingredient of ecosystem functioning, the core zone is to be kept free from l human pressures external to the system.

Buffer Zone

The buffer zone, adjoins or surrounds core zone, uses and activities are managed in this area in the ways that help in protection of core zone in its natural condition. These uses and activities include restoration, demonstration sites for enhancing value addition to the Resources, limited recreation, tourism, fishing, grazing, etc; which are permitted to reduce its effect on core zone. Research and educational activities are to be encouraged. Human activities, if natural within BR, are likely to continue if these do not adversely affect the ecological diversity.

Transition Zone

The transition area is the outermost part of a biosphere reserve. This is usually not delimited one and is a zone of cooperation where conservation knowledge and management skills are applied and uses are managed in harmony with the purpose of the biosphere reserve.  This includes settlements, crop lands, managed forests and area for intensive recreation and other economic uses characteristics of the region.

 

5. Tripartite functions of BR (Conservation, Development and logistic support)

• To conserve the diversity and Integrity of plants and animals within natural ecosystems
• To safeguard Genetic diversity of species on which their continuing evolution depends
• To ensure sustainable use of Natural Resources through most appropriate technology for improvement of economic well-being of the local people
• To provide areas for multi-faceted research and monitoring
• To provide facilities for education and training

6. Management

100% grant-in-aid is provided under the Biosphere Reserve scheme for the approved items of activities for implementation of Management Action Plans submitted by the concerned States/UT. The activities permitted under the scheme are broadly under the following areas:

• Value addition activities
• Sustainable use of threatened resources
• Rehabilitation of landscapes of threatened species and ecosystems
• Socio-economic upliftment of local communities
• Maintenance and protection of corridor areas
• Development of Communication system and Networking
• Development of Eco-tourism

BR scheme is different from other conservation related schemes. It has the focus on the welfare of local inhabitants through provision of supplementary and alternate livelihood support to the people in the buffer and transition zones in order to reduce biotic pressure on biodiversity of the natural reserves of core zone.

 

Main Characteristics of Biosphere Reserves

1. Achieving the three international functions: conservation, development and logistic support.
2. Outpacing traditional confined conservation zones, through appropriate zoning schemes combining core protected areas with zones where sustainable development is fostered by local dwellers and enterprises with often highly innovative and participative Governance systems.
3. Focusing on a multi-stakeholder approach with particular emphasis on the involvement of local communities in management;
4. Fostering dialogue for conflict resolution of natural resource use.
5. Integrating cultural and biological diversity, especially the role of traditional knowledge in ecosystem management.
6. Demonstrating Sound sustainable development practices and policies based on research and monitoring.
7. Acting as sites of excellence for education and training.
8. Participating in the World Network.

 

 

 

The bio-reserves in India

The Indian government has established 18 Biosphere Reserves in India,(categories roughly corresponding to IUCN Category V Protected areas), which protect larger areas of natural habitat (than a National Park or Animal Sanctuary), and often include one or more National Parks and/or preserves, along with buffer zones that are open to some economic uses. Protection is granted not only to the flora and fauna of the protected region, but also to the human communities who inhabit these regions, and their ways of life. Animals are protected and saved here.

The Indian government has established eighteen biosphere reserves of India which protect larger areas of natural habitat and often include one or more national parks and/or preserves, along buffer zones that are open to some economic uses. Protection is granted not only to the flora and fauna of the protected region, but also to the human communities who inhabit these regions, and their ways of life.

The bio-reserves in India are:

• Achanakmar-Amarkantak
• Agasthyamalai
• DibruSaikhowa
• DihangDibang
• Great Nicobar
• Gulf of Mannar
• Kachchh
• Kangchenjunga
• Manas
• Nanda Devi
• The Nilgiris
• Nokrek
• Pachmarhi
• Simlipal
• Sundarbans
• Cold Desert
• Seshachalam hills
• Panna

 

Ten of the eighteen biosphere reserves are a part of the World Network of Biosphere Reserves, based on the UNESCO Man and the Biosphere Programme (MAB) list.

• Gulf of Mannar Biosphere Reserve
• Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve
• Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve
• Nokrek National Park
• Pachmarhi Biosphere Reserve
• Simlipal National Park
• Sundarbans Biosphere Reserve
• Achanakmar-Amarkantak Biosphere Reserve
• Nicobar Islands
• Agasthyamala Biosphere Reserve

 

 

List of Biosphere reserves in India. Name of Biosphere reserve, Year of Notification, Total Area and Location is as follows…..

Sl. No.	Name of Biosphere Reserve	Date of Notification	Area of the core / buffer/transition (In Km2)	Location (States)
1	Nilgiri	01.09.1986	5520 (Core 1240 & Buffer 4280)	Part of Wayanad, Nagarhole, Bandipur and Madumalai, Nilambur, Silent Valley and Siruvani hills (Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka).
2	Nanda Devi	18.01.1988	5860.69 (Core 712.12, Buffer 5,148.570) & T. 546.34)	Part of Chamoli, Pithoragarh, and Bageshwar districts (Uttarakhand).
3	Nokrek	01.09.1988	820 (Core 47.48 & Buffer 227.92, Transition Zone 544.60)	Part of Garo hills (Meghalaya).
4	Great Nicobar	06.01.1989	885 (Core 705 & Buffer 180)	Southern most islands of Andaman And Nicobar (A&N Islands).
5	Gulf of Mannar	18.02.1989	10,500 km2 Total Gulf area (area of Islands 5.55 km2)	Indian part of Gulf of Mannar between India and Sri Lanka (Tamil Nadu).
6	Manas	14.03.1989	2837 (Core 391 & Buffer 2,446)	Part of Kokrajhar, Bongaigaon, Barpeta, Nalbari, Kamprup and Darang districts (Assam).
7	Sunderbans	29.03.1989	9630 (Core 1700 & Buffer  7900)	Part of delta of Ganges and Brahamaputra river system (West Bengal).
8	Simlipal	21.06.1994	4374 (Core 845, Buffer 2129 & Transition 1400	Part of Mayurbhanj district (Orissa).
9	Dibru-Saikhowa	28.07.1997	765 (Core 340 & Buffer 425)	Part of Dibrugarh and Tinsukia Districts (Assam).
10	Dehang-Dibang	02.09.1998	5111.50 (Core 4094.80 &Buffer 1016.70)	Part of Siang and Dibang Valley in Arunachal Pradesh.
11	Pachmarhi	03.03.1999	4926	Parts of Betul, Hoshangabad and Chindwara districts of Madhya Pradesh.
12	Khangchendzonga	07.02.2000	2619.92 (Core 1819.34 & Buffer 835.92)	Parts of Khangchendzonga hills and Sikkim.
13	Agasthyamalai	12.11.2001	1828	Neyyar, Peppara and Shendurney Wildlife Sanctuaries and their adjoining areas in Kerala.
14	Achanakamar –    Amarkantak	30.3.2005	3835.51 (Core 551.55 & Buffer  3283.86)	Covers parts of Anupur and Dindori districts of M.P. and parts of Bilaspur districts of Chhattishgarh State.
15	Kachchh	29.01.2008	12,454 km2	Part of Kachchh, Rajkot, Surendra Nagar and Patan Civil Districts of Gujarat State.
16	Cold Desert	28.08.2009	7770	Pin Valley National Park and surroundings; Chandratal and Sarchu&Kibber Wildlife Sanctuary in Himachal Pradesh.
17	Seshachalam Hills	20.09.2010	4755.997	Seshachalam Hill Ranges covering parts of Chittoor and Kadapa districts of Andhra Pradesh.
18	Panna	25.08.2011	2998.98	Part of Panna and Chhattarpur districts in Madhya Pradesh.

 

The International Advisory Committee for Biosphere Reserves

The International Advisory Committee for Biosphere Reserves is the primary scientific and technical Committee body advising the International Co-ordinating Council (ICC) of the MAB Programme and its World Network of Biosphere Reserves (WNBR) and the Director General of UNESCO on matters pertaining to the WNBR.

The Committee advise the Director-General of UNESCO and the MAB-ICC on scientific and technical matters concerning the nomination of new sites and, changes and periodic reviews of sites already included in the WNBR, as well as the development, operation and monitoring of the WNBR which they constitute in accordance with the Seville Strategy and the Statutory Framework for the WNBR.

The Committee is composed of twelve members, who are appointed for four years by the Director-General, after consultation with the Member States and or the National Committees for the Man and the Biosphere Programme of the countries concerned.

The members of the Committee are selected for their scientific qualifications and for their experience in promoting and implementing the concept of biosphere reserve.

Designation of Biosphere Reserves

Article 5 of the 1995 Statutory Framework of the World Network of Biosphere Reserve, states the designation procedure for biosphere reserves. It reads as follows:

Article 5- Designation procedure

1. Biosphere reserves are designated for inclusion in the Network by the International Co-ordinating Council (ICC) of the MAB Programme in accordance with the following procedure.
2. a) States, through National MAB Committees where appropriate, forward nominations with supporting documentation to the secretariat after having reviewed potential sites, taking into account the criteria as defined in Article 4.
3. b) The secretariat verifies the content and supporting documentation: in the case of incomplete nomination, the secretariat requests the missing information from the nominating State.
4. c) Nominations will be considered by the Advisory Committee for Biosphere Reserves for recommendation to ICC.
5. d) ICC of the MAB Programme takes a decision on nominations for designation.

The Director-General of UNESCO notifies the State concerned of the decision of ICC.

2. States are encouraged to examine and improve the adequacy of any existing biosphere reserve, and to propose extension as appropriate, to enable it to function fully within the Network. Proposals for extension follow the same procedure as described above for new designations.3. Biosphere reserves which have been designated before the adoption of the present Statutory Framework are considered to be already part of the Network. The provisions of the Statutory Framework therefore apply to them.

Periodic Review Process

The periodic review is an important event in the life of a biosphere reserve. It enables a review, every ten years, of the functioning, zoning, scale of the biosphere reserve as well as the involvement of the populations living in the site. The Statutory Framework for the World Network of Biosphere Reserves (WNBR) makes provision under Article 9 that “the status of each biosphere reserve should be subject to a periodic review every ten years, based on a report prepared by the concerned authority, on the basis of the criteria of Article 4, and forwarded to the secretariat by the State concerned. The report will be considered by the Advisory Committee for Biosphere Reserves for recommendation to International Co-ordinating Council.”

The periodic review represents an opportunity to carry out a qualitative survey of the actions implemented, their results. It’s a time to take stock of progress made by the biosphere reserve, especially as concerns the updating of knowledge, skills and expertise in resource and ecosystem management. It also provides an opportunity to discuss the updating of the zonation system and assess its relevance, question the objectives and means of management policies and examine the issues and problems tied to implementation. It is also a time to discuss weak points.  Its objective is to improve the quality of the biosphere reserves and their functioning as sites for testing and demonstrating approaches to sustainable development. To date, 356 periodic review reports were received by the Secretariat and examined by the MAB International co-ordinating Council.

Biosphere reserves which are not able to meet the criteria of Article 4 have been withdrawn by the countries from the World Network of Biosphere Reserves (WNBR) (see Article 9 of the Statutory Framework). As of August 2013, 16 sites have been withdrawn.

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. The Programme of Biosphere Reserve was initiated by UNESCO in 1971. The purpose of the formation of the biosphere reserve is to conserve in situ all forms of life, along with its support system, in its totality, so that it could serve as a referral system for monitoring and evaluating changes in natural ecosystems. The first biosphere reserve of the world was established in 1979, since then the network of biosphere reserves has increased to 631 in 119 countries across the world. Presently, there are 18 notified biosphere reserves in India.