Famous as Ayurvedic paradise, Gandhamardan hill range in Odisha gets ‘biodiversity heritage site’ tag

Famous as Ayurvedic paradise, Gandhamardan hill range in Odisha gets ‘biodiversity heritage site’ tag

Subject : Environment

Section: Biodiversity

Context: The picturesque Gandhamardan hill range of Odisha has been accorded the tag of ‘biodiversity heritage site’ — the third such spot in the state after Mahendragiri hills in Gajapati and Mandasaru gorge in Kandhamal district.

Issuing a notification to this effect, the Forest, Environment and Climate Change department stated that a total 18,963.898 hectares (189.639 square km) of Gandhamardan hill system, spread over 12,431 hectares in Bargarh and 6,532 hectares in Balangir, has been declared a ‘biodiversity heritage site’ as per the provisions of Odisha Biodiversity Rules – 2012 to protect its fragile ecosystem.

Why Gandhamardan hill is special?

A treasure trove of medicinal plants, the hill system within Gandhamardan reserve forest is considered the ‘Ayurvedic paradise’ of the state.

As per the government notification, Gandhamardan hill range is famous as ‘Ayurvedic paradise’ of Odisha’ where traditional knowledge holders have been collecting wild medicinal plants to treat different diseases and ailments.

Two historical monuments — Nrusinghanath temple on the northern slope of the hill and Harishankar temple on the southern slope of the hill — have immense cultural significance, it stated.

However, the rich biological resources of the cultural landscape are under pressure due to anthropogenic and climatic factors, while the traditional knowledge associated with the bio-resources is also declining, necessitating long-term protection and conservation of the hill range, the department underlined.

Process:

The Odisha Biodiversity Board (OBB) had sent a proposal to the state government in December last year to declare the threatened and ecologically sensitive landscape as a ‘Biodiversity Heritage Site’ for long-term protection, conservation and management of biological resources of the hill range having socio-economic, ecological and biological significance.

After the Board received proposals from the Biodiversity Management Committee (BMC) of Nandupalla, Telenpalli, Bartunda, Mithapalli as well as proposals from DFO Balangir and Bargarh and other stakeholders to declare the hill range as a biodiversity heritage site, a detailed inventory of the flora and fauna in the hill ecosystem was prepared.

The board found 1,700 species of plants and animals — 1,200 species of plants and 500 species of animals — in the hill ecosystem. Besides, around 209 trees, 135 shrubs, 473 herbs, 77 climbers and 300 species of medicinal plants were also recorded in the hill ecosystem of which 18 species are tagged as threatened and one species as endemic.

Other Bio heritage sites of Odissa

Notably, the Odisha government had notified Mahendragiri as the ‘biodiversity heritage site’ in November 2022, while the Mandasaru gorge in Kandhamal district was the first landscape to be notified as bio heritage site in the state in 2019

Biodiversity Heritage Sites (BHS)-

• Under Section 37 of Biological Diversity Act, 2002 the State Government in consultation with local bodies may notify the areas of biodiversity importance as Biodiversity Heritage Sites.
• The Biodiversity Heritage Sites are the well defined areas that are unique, ecologically fragile ecosystems – terrestrial, coastal and inland waters and, marine having rich biodiversity comprising of any one or more of the following components:
  • richness of wild as well as domesticated species or intra-specific categories
  • high endemism
  • presence of rare and threatened species
  • keystone species
  • species of evolutionary significance
  • wild ancestors of domestic/cultivated species or their varieties
  • past preeminence of biological components represented by fossil beds
  • having significant cultural, ethical or aesthetic values; important for the maintenance of cultural diversity (with or without a long history of human association with them)
• Areas having any of the following characteristics may qualify for inclusion as BHS.

Biodiversity Heritage Site (BHS)      –        District/State

1. Nallur Tamarind Grove                       – Bangalore, Karnataka
2. Hogrekan                                                 – Chikmagalur,  Karnataka
3. University of Agricultural Sciences,  – Bengaluru, Karnataka
4. Ambaraguda                                           – Karnataka
5. Glory of Allapalli                                    – Maharashtra
6. Tonglu BHS and Dhotrey BHS under the Darjeeling Forest Division  – Darjeeling,    West Bengal
7. Mandasaru                                              – Odisha
8. Dialong Village                                       – Manipur
9. Ameenpur lake                                       –  Telangana
10. Majuli                                                       – Assam
11. Gharial Rehabilitation Centre            –  Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh
12. Chilkigarh Kanak Durga                     –  West Bengal
13. Purvatali Rai                                          –  Goa
14. Naro Hills                                               –  Madhya Pradesh
15. Asramam                                                – Kerala
16. Schistura Hiranyakeshi                       –  Sindhudurg, Maharashtra
17. Arittapatti                                               – Tamilnadu

People’s Biodiversity Registers (PBR):

• The PBRs focus on participatory documentation of local biodiversity, traditional knowledge and practices.
• The register shall contain comprehensive information on the availability and knowledge of local biological resources, their medicinal or any other use or any other traditional knowledge associated with them.
• They are seen as key legal documents in ascertaining the rights of local people over the biological resources and associated traditional knowledge.