The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) in its World Heritage Outlook 4 Report has flagged India’s World Heritage Sites of “significant concern” due to increasing environmental threats.
IUCN’s World Heritage Outlook 4 Report
- The World Heritage Outlook 4 (2025) evaluates over 200 natural and mixed World Heritage Sites globally, assessing their conservation status and threats.
- It classifies sites into four categories:
Good, Good with some concerns, Significant concern, and Critical. - For the first time, the share of sites with a positive conservation outlook has declined notably, indicating worsening protection levels.
Major Threats Identified in South Asia
- Climate Change: Rising temperatures and changing rainfall patterns are damaging habitats and altering species distribution.
- Tourism Pressure: Unregulated tourism leads to waste generation, habitat disturbance, and increased human–wildlife conflict.
- Invasive Alien Species: Non-native plants such as eucalyptus and acacia threaten native flora and forest structure.
- Infrastructure Development: Roads, hydropower dams, and railways are fragmenting habitats and increasing wildlife mortality.
- Additional issues include forest fires, illegal logging, encroachments, hunting, and waste disposal.
Status of Indian World Heritage Sites
- Significant Concern: Western Ghats, Manas National Park, Sundarbans National Park.
- Good with Some Concerns: Kaziranga, Keoladeo, Nanda Devi–Valley of Flowers, Great Himalayan National Park.
- Good: Khangchendzonga National Park, Sikkim.
Why the Western Ghats Are Endangered
- Among the world’s oldest mountain ranges, the Western Ghats host high biodiversity with over 300 threatened species.
- Major challenges include:
- Construction of hydropower and dam projects like the Sillahalla Pumped Storage Project.
- Expansion of agriculture and plantations replacing native ecosystems.
- Climate-induced shifts forcing species to move to higher altitudes.
- Garbage and plastic waste from tourism affecting wildlife.
- Spread of invasive species degrading forest health.
Threats to the Sundarbans
- Increasing salinity, heavy metal contamination, and unsustainable resource extraction threaten mangrove health.
- Sea-level rise and frequent cyclones further reduce biodiversity and habitat stability.
Global Context and Significance
- Natural World Heritage Sites cover less than 1% of Earth’s surface, yet sustain over 20% of global species richness.
- The report aligns with the Kunming–Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, urging urgent conservation action to prevent biodiversity collapse.
INTERNATIONAL UNION FOR CONSERVATION OF NATURE (IUCN)
- The IUCN is a global organization founded in 1948 that works for the conservation of nature and sustainable use of natural resources.
- Key Function:
It maintains the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, which assesses the extinction risk of plant and animal species worldwide. - Headquarters & Membership:
Headquartered in Gland, Switzerland, it brings together governments, NGOs, and experts from around the world to promote biodiversity conservation and environmental policy-making.
Conclusion
The IUCN report serves as a warning and a roadmap — urging India and other nations to strengthen conservation, regulate tourism and infrastructure, and restore natural ecosystems to safeguard their priceless biodiversity.
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