Geography Project

Wild life conservation

efforts in India
Submitted by
Manoj M
th

10 A
Submitted to
Sujatha
mam
Preface

Content
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Topic

Introduction

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IMPORTANCE OF WILDLIFE CONSERVATION

Threats for wild life

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Introduction
The Indian sub-continent with its varied geographical spread from
the Himalayas in the north to the Cauvery basin in the south and the
Kutch region in the west to the plains of Assam in East present a
diverse range of environmental conditions for some of the most
magnificent as well as the rarest wildlife species of the world in India
to exist. However, the past few decades have seen the greed and
negligence of human beings working to the detriment of this rich
wildlife. Large-scale poaching and habitat destruction have resulted
in a rapid decline in the population of most of the wild animals and
birds. Some animals like the Indian cheetah due to this are now
extinct. Conservation of Indian wildlife was not given the requisite
importance for a long time. However, the government as well as the
people slowly and gradually understood their responsibility of saving
wildlife in India.

Today, efforts are being made towards wildlife conservation in India,

to preserve this natural wealth. Numerous wildlife conservation
projects have been undertaken in India, both by the government as
well as the NGOs, to protect the rich wildlife of the subcontinent. The
private sector has also started stepping in as part of their corporate
social responsibility to bring about this change and increase peoples
awareness.

IMPORTANCE OF WILDLIFE
CONSERVATION
Wildlife conservation is applied ecology and may also be regarded as
bio-economy. Wild life conservation is the management and sensible
use of the available natural resources. Governments of India have
passed laws and established national parks, sanctuaries and other
wildlife reserves in an effort to save the dwindling wildlife.
Every species plays an important role in maintaining an ecological
balance among the living system of the earth. These systems must
continue to function if is to survive. Loss of any species threatens the
survival of several species inclusive of man. Destruction of wildlife
may cause upset in such a balance resulting in severe consequences.
Thus, protection of every animal species is of great importance to the
quality of life and to the survival of man himself.
On all continents wildlife is becoming an increasingly important
recreational asset and tourist attraction.
The preservation of wildlife helps many naturalists and behavior
biologists to study morphology, anatomy, physiology, ecology,
behavior biology of the wild animals under their natural surroundings.

Threats to Wildlife
The problem of overpopulation is one of the major reasons for
the depleting of natural wild life in India. Exploitation of wild
populations for food has resulted in destructions of wild life.
With the increase in tourism, the parks have witnessed an
increase in wildfires also. Innocent campfires started by visitors
have, more often than not, led to menacing wildfires. These fires
not only kill animals, but also destroy their natural habitat.
Releasing of chemicals and other toxic effluents into the water
bodies has led to poisoning of the water. The animals and birds
drinking such water face a fatal threat. Even the population of
fish, living in such water bodies, is declining at a fast pace.
The climate changes taking place in the world today, are
affecting not only humans, but also the wildlife. The natural
habitat as well as migration patterns of the animals and birds are
experiencing disturbs patterns.
The threat of poaching has been haunting the wildlife of India
since ages. Even after the establishment of wildlife sanctuaries
and national parks, the threat of poaching has not been totally
eliminated.
The destruction of forest land for agriculture, development of
towns and cities, construction of dams, or other purposes is also
an important threat for wild life.

Conservation of Wild life

Last few decades have seen emergence of human encroachment to

an extent that has never been seen. This is one of the greatest threat
to India's wildlife. In order to overcome the result of human
encroachment many national parks as well as protected areas have
been established so far and the first came in 1935. Also in 1972, to
protect the tiger and wildlife in India, the Wildlife Protection Act and
Project Tiger to safeguard were enacted.

National parks in India

Conclusions

Wildlife habitat and species around the world are facing a crisis. It is
estimated that global warming may cause the extinction of 1537%
of species by 2050. This is another aspect which needs attention
because we could lose about 1.25 million species. Unlike other
environmental losses, this one cannot be reversed because nature
does not give second chances to biodiversity.
If we take into consideration the conventional reasons why wildlife is
disappearing in Asia, India is doing far better than other countries.
India has launched an extensive protected area network of research
institutions in which legislation, socio-economic factors, and wildlife
research are playing a great role. The Central Zoo Authority plays a
key role with zoos in programming research activities related to the
conservation and propagation of wild animals. Planned research
activities include studies on wildlife biology, genetic variability,
species- specific nutritional requirements, animal behavior,
epidemiological surveys, and disease diagnosis through postmortem
examination. The future depends on interaction between captive and
wild animals, preservation of biodiversity, and genetic and
demographic variations of species. India still has 65% of Asias tiger
population, 85% of the Asian rhino population, 80% of the Asian
elephant population, and 100% of the Asiatic lion population. These
are all highly endangered and poached animals.

Acknowledgement
I take this opportunity to express my
profound gratitude and deep regards to my teachers
Prof.____________________ and Prof_______________. for their
exemplary guidance, monitoring and constant

encouragement throughout the course of this project. The

blessing, help and guidance given by them time to time shall
carry me a long way in the journey of life on which I am about
to embark.
I also take this opportunity to express a deep
sense of gratitude to,_________ Principal, Senior Secondary
School for his cordial support, valuable information and
guidance, which helped me in completing this task through
various stages.
I would also like to express my heartily
gratitude to the lab assistants
for
their support during the making of this project.
Lastly, I thank almighty, my parents and
friends for their constant encouragement without which this
project would not be possible.

Bibliography