PUDUCHERRY: The Wildlife Institute of India will soon come out with an atlas on important coastal marine biodiversity areas across the country.
Of the 400 sites shortlisted, two are in Puducherry, B.C. Choudhury, Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, said on Monday.
At the World Wildlife Week celebrations, organised by the Department of Ecology and Environmental Sciences of Pondicherry University, Mr. Choudhury said the institute had completed the three-year project covering coastal areas, including Lakshadweep and the Andaman and Nicobar islands. “We have shortlisted 400 sites, and the atlas will be ready in three or six months. We will also release State-wise atlas on important coastal marine biodiversity areas.”
Speaking on ‘Endangered and Threatened Wildlife Species: Their Conservation and Management Needs,’ he said it was becoming increasingly important to sensitise the youth to environmental conservation. “Our endeavour should be not to bring species in the endangered species category, and so prevention is very important.”
As for the works undertaken by the institute, Mr. Choudhury said: “We are initiating a national assessment of human-crocodile conflicts. As a means of tracing the migration of turtles, we have installed satellite transmitters on turtles and are planning to install 40 more transmitters this season. There are plans to install satellite transmitters on whale sharks too.”
In his address on ‘Wildlife Conservation-Challenges and Prospects,’ Wildlife Warden of Nagappatinam V. Thirunnavukarasu said habitat destruction, poaching, development versus conservation, tourism, terrorism, custom killings and man-animal conflict were the challenges facing wildlife conservation. “Consumerism has become the root cause of several problems. It is important to be a responsible and responsive citizen so that the degradation of environment could be arrested and conservation taken care of.”
A. Balasubramanian, Director of Culture and Cultural Relations, Pondicherry University, said the Vice-Chancellor had advised the Department of Ecology and Environmental Sciences to undertake a survey of flora and fauna on the university campus.
He said students could evolve a project to create a biodiversity park and heritage site.
