Introduction: India’s Forest Policy and Wildlife Protection Law India has long been committed to environmental conservation, with policies and initiatives aimed at protecting its rich biodiversity and ensuring sustainable development. One of the cornerstone objectives of India’s environmental policy is to achieve 33% of its geographical area under forest cover. [...]

A large chunk of the Western Ghats, which primarily stretches across four districts of Karnataka, lost 20,000 hectares (ha) of its area over the last 17 years — putting one of the world’s biological hotspots at risk. The alarming rate of loss of tree cover over last five years can [...]