Western Ghats, The True Treasure:

The biodiversity rich flora and fauna of the beautiful Western Ghats is no doubt India’s pride. The southern part of India, drawing a stretch of 1600 km, containing chains of mountains parallel to India’s western coast recognized as an UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2006 and it is one of the eight hotspots of biological diversity in the world. It traverses through the states of Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Goa, Maharashtra and Gujarat. As we know, there is always a special insignia in the old things; also in this mountain chain (which is older than the Himalayan mountains) that feature reflects. The persistence of unique biophysical and ecological processes is so intense here. The montane forest ecosystems on the slopes of mountains affect the monsoon weather pattern of India.
However, as the endemic species are in threat, now the exceptionally high endemism of the Western Ghats is a matter of great concern for us. Animals like Nilgiri tahr (Nilgiritragus hylocrius) and the long tailed macaque (Macaca fascicularis) are endemic to this area. Many species of plants such as Anaphalis neelgerryana, Elaeocarpus recurvatus, and grasses like Eriochrysis rangacharii come across different threat factors including habitat loss, climate change and being outcompeted by invasive species. Lantana camara is a very common invasive species which is of American origin.
So, effective conservation effort is a must to compensate for the golden loss. Previously for conservation Gadgil Committee or WGEEP was set up in 2011 which declared 64% of the Western Ghats to be Ecologically Sensitive Area (ESA) and only limited development is allowed in graded zones. But the report of Gadgil Committe is criticized to be too eco-friendly without relying on real situations. In contrast to this the Kasturirangan reports say that only 37% area of the Western Ghats is under ESA. It tries to keep a balance between development and environment. The mining activities, thermal power projects, red industries, hydropower projects should be allowed in this natural treasure only after a thorough scientific research.
Therefore, we should not extend the debate of development versus conservation rather we should try to mitigate the difficulties in order to save the hottest hotspot which accommodates at least 325 globally threatened flora, fauna, bird, amphibian, reptile and fish species.