Current Affairs Environment: Shivalik hills will be notified as country’s first interstate biosphere reserve with the setting up of a biodiversity corridor there to protect its natural habitat and flora and fauna.

This will be the first interstate biosphere reserve so far…as it will involve several states like Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, and Uttarakhand Biosphere Reserve is notified to protect the larger area of natural habitat, flora and fauna and human communities.

This move follows a proposal from Punjab, seeking declaration of Shivalik ranges as biodiversity corridor to preserve and protect its ecosystem, The Shivalik had cultural and geological importance and that the area had been damaged by unregulated mining of sand and stone.

Damage to Shivalik (because of) is unregulated mining of sand and stones. Maintaining that there would not be a complete ban on carrying out economic activity (sand or stone mining) after the notification, the economic activity being carried out in that area would be on sustainable basis under Environment Protection Act.

A management committee will be set up for devising biodiversity management plan to ensure sustainable economic activity in the area.

It is already declared that the Tiger as national animal and the elephant will be national heritage animal. Now the  dolphins in ganges  as to be  national aquatic animal.

Noting that bio piracy was a serious concern in the context of biodiversity, countrys resources like herbal medicine, turmeric, basmati were under threat of being patented by US and Europe. grave threat as far as bio piracy of our resources is concerned.

Basmati rice has not given Geographical Indications (GI), the Centre was trying to find out a solution in consultation with Pakistan government to declare basmati rice as GI.

The Centre has to set up a traditional knowledge digital library having 2 lakh formulation in Ayurveda, Unani, Yoga with an investment of Rs 10 crore to safeguard the countrys resources from being patented by other countries. And  also focusing on setting up marine biodiversity which has a coastal line of 7500 km.

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