Sikkim blossoms: State home to 27% of India’s flowering plants

Sikkim blossoms: State home to 27% of India’s flowering plants

Subject: Environment

Context : Sikkim, the smallest State with less than 1% of India’s landmass, is home to 27% of all flowering plants found in the country, reveals a recent publication by the Botanical Survey of India (BSI).

Concept:

• The publication lists 532 species of wild orchids (which is more than 40% of all orchid species found in India), 36 species of rhododendron and 20 species of oak, and more than 30 species of high-value medicinal plants, among other species.
• Despite being the smallest state in India with less than 1% of India’s landmass, Sikkim is home to 27% of all flowering plants found in India.
• This presence of a diverse set of ecosystems varying from the subalpine to the temperate to the tropical is one of the reasons for high diversity of flora in Sikkim.

Concerns:

• Developmental activities such as the widening of roads to Nathu La and the hydel power plants in north Sikkim could have a negative impact on the rich biodiversity of Sikkim.

Sikkim’s ecology:

• Sikkim is a part of the Kanchenjunga biosphere landscape.
• Sikkim is home to different altitudinal ecosystems, with the elevation varing from 300 metres to above 8500 metres above mean sea level

Additional information:

• The Sikkim Forest Tree (Amity & Reverence) Rules, 2017 allows any person to associate with trees standing on his or her private land or on any public land by entering into a Mith/Mit or Mitini relationship.
• This is an acknowledgement of the unique cultural practice prevalent in Sikkim and is of significance given the global environmental conservational efforts underway.