India - A Mega Diverse Country :

  • India accounts for 7-8% of recorded plant & animal species of the world.
  • India has four global biodiversity hotspots - Eastern Himalayas, North East, Sunderbans and Western Ghat.
  • Total Forest and Tree cover of the country is estimated as 23.84 percent of geographical area of the country.
  • Total numbers of Protected Areas (PAs) in India is 661 consisting of 100 National Parks, 514 Wildlife Sanctuaries, 43 Conservation Reserve, 4 Community Reserves, encompassing 4.8% of the total geographic area of the country.
  • 15 biodiversity rich areas of the country covering an area of approximately 74000 sq kms have been designated as Bio-sphere reserve and four Biosphere reserve viz Nilgiri, Nandadevi, Sundarbans & Gulf of Mannar have been recognize by UNESCO under world network of Biospheres.
  • Presently 25 Indian Wetlands have been designated as Ramsar sites in the country and six new sites are under consideration.
  • Carbon stocks in our forests stood 6662 m MT in the year 2005.
  • Nearly 27% of the total population of the country, comprising 275 million rural people, depends on forests for its livelihood.
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