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		<title>Mongabay India</title>
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		<link>https://india.mongabay.com/list/india/</link>
		<description>India&#039;s environmental science and conservation news</description>
		<lastBuildDate>Fri, 25 Sep 2026 12:52:44 +0000</lastBuildDate>
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					<title>NGOs call for permanent moratorium on animal imports to Vantara</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/ngos-call-for-permanent-moratorium-on-animal-imports-to-vantara/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/ngos-call-for-permanent-moratorium-on-animal-imports-to-vantara/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>25 Sep 2026 17:14:27 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Simrin Sirur]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Kundan Pandey]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/09/25151638/13353495075_e4b2bdfa0d_4k-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=41206</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Beyond Protected Areas]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global and India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Conservation, Endangered species, Environmental Crime, Environmental Law, Law Enforcement, Wildlife, Wildlife Protection Act, Wildlife Trade, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[A group of 27 global conservation organisations have written to Vantara calling for a permanent halt on wild animal imports to the facility. The letter was written in response to Vantara’s own statement announcing a temporary moratorium on animal imports till June 2027.  Vantara is a private zoo and animal rescue centre owned by India&#8217;s Ambani [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[A group of 27 global conservation organisations have written to Vantara calling for a permanent halt on wild animal imports to the facility. The letter was written in response to Vantara’s own statement announcing a temporary moratorium on animal imports till June 2027.  Vantara is a private zoo and animal rescue centre owned by India&#8217;s Ambani family. If Vantara seeks to establish itself as a leading institution, it should “adopt the most rigorous and precautionary criteria for wildlife transfers,” the conservation groups say. A one year moratorium “may signal to exporters that imports will resume thereafter. It risks creating further demand, leading to the stockpiling of animals by wildlife traders and traffickers in anticipation of its expiration.” On August 19, Vantara announced it would pause all animal imports till its own internal due diligence systems were in place. A 2025 report by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) Secretariat had raised serious concerns about the origin and scale of wild animal imports approved by India, for transfer to Vantara. Many of these animals did not have a history of being captively bred, the CITES report found. Vantara has said in a statement that it would shift its focus to in-situ conservation within range states, and set up a three-tiered mechanism to vet future animal acquisitions. Each import proposal will be passed through an internal Due Diligence Committee, an Advisory Board, and a Governing Council, chaired by former secretary general of the CITES, John&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/ngos-call-for-permanent-moratorium-on-animal-imports-to-vantara/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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						<item>
					<title>Abandoning exotic pets raises ecological concerns</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/hard-to-resist-harder-to-keep/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/hard-to-resist-harder-to-keep/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>25 Sep 2026 14:22:57 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Arathi Menon]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Aditi Tandon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Animals]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[exotic species]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[invasives]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[pets]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/09/23190133/PHOTO-2026-09-11-16-17-19-2-1-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=41172</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Beyond Protected Areas and From the Wild, For Trade]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Conservation, Endangered species, Environmental Law, Pet Trade, Wildlife, Wildlife Trade, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[This is Part 3 of a series on exotic pet trade. The series looks at the health impacts, legal challenges and the ecological consequences of keeping exotic wild animals as pets. Part 1 explores how the trade enables zoonoses, while Part 2 observes how India is emerging as a link in the global primate trade. [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[This is Part 3 of a series on exotic pet trade. The series looks at the health impacts, legal challenges and the ecological consequences of keeping exotic wild animals as pets. Part 1 explores how the trade enables zoonoses, while Part 2 observes how India is emerging as a link in the global primate trade. India’s exotic pet trade has grown from a niche pursuit into a significant industry. Over 40,000 people across 30 states and union territories declared their exotic pets in the government’s 2020 Voluntary Disclosure Scheme, making the scale of ownership hard to ignore, according to a Humane World for Animals report published this year. Even that, the report cautions, could represent only a fraction of actual ownership. So, what draws people to animals that are often unfamiliar, expensive and difficult to keep? Conservation researcher working on illegal wildlife hunting and trade Uttara Mendiratta identifies several motives: the desire to own something others do not, the appeal of animals perceived as unusual or “cool”, and the belief that some exotic species are easy to maintain. Research into exotic pet buyers in Japan points to another dimension. A consumer study found that people were drawn to the “mental healing” (Iyashi in Japanese) they associated with animals, as well as their cuteness (Kawaii). Social media can amplify these attractions, creating a ready marketplace where people can see what is trending, find sellers and learn how to care for unfamiliar species. But the impulse to own an unusual animal can&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/hard-to-resist-harder-to-keep/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
														</item>
						<item>
					<title>Odours offer new clues in monitoring big cats</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/odours-offer-new-clues-in-monitoring-big-cats/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/odours-offer-new-clues-in-monitoring-big-cats/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>24 Sep 2026 10:17:35 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Sneha Mahale]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Priyanka Shankar]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[leopard]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[leopards]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[wildlife monitoring]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/09/23180257/Tiger_spray_marking._DavidRaju_1-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=41161</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Beyond Protected Areas]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animal Behaviour, Animals, Big Cats, Biodiversity, Camera traps, Cats, Conservation, Ecology, Environment, Forests, Mammals, Research, Technology and Conservation, Tigers, Wildlife, and Zoos]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Camera trapping and genetic sampling are big cat monitoring techniques that can estimate population size, density and identify individuals. But they often provide limited information about an animal’s age, sex, reproductive status or health. A new study now suggests that the animal’s urine and scat could reveal more than its presence in a forest. Researchers [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Camera trapping and genetic sampling are big cat monitoring techniques that can estimate population size, density and identify individuals. But they often provide limited information about an animal’s age, sex, reproductive status or health. A new study now suggests that the animal’s urine and scat could reveal more than its presence in a forest. Researchers from the National Centre for Biological Sciences (NCBS), Ahmedabad University and the Danish Academy of Technical Sciences tested whether volatile organic compounds (VOCs) present in urine and scat could provide a non-invasive way of collecting information about Bengal tigers and Indian leopards. “The goal was to see whether you could ‘read’ biologically meaningful information — species, age, sex, even reproductive state — directly from the odours the animals leave behind, without ever having to catch, dart, or physically handle the animal,” says B.V. Aditi Prasad, the corresponding author of the study and currently a postdoctoral fellow at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Germany. Testing the method The researchers collected urine and scat from nine captive tigers and 15 captive leopards at three zoos — Bannerghatta Biological Park in Bengaluru, Kamala Nehru Zoological Park in Ahmedabad and Sayajibaug Zoo in Vadodara. The ages and sexes of the animals were known, allowing researchers to compare their chemical profiles with these characteristics. A new study of tiger and leopard samples in India suggests that a big cat&#8217;s urine and scat could reveal more about its ecology than camera traps and genetic samples. Image by Prasenjeet Yadav.&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/odours-offer-new-clues-in-monitoring-big-cats/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/odours-offer-new-clues-in-monitoring-big-cats/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
														</item>
						<item>
					<title>As exotic primates reach India, welfare concerns grow</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/as-exotic-primates-reach-india-welfare-concerns-grow/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/as-exotic-primates-reach-india-welfare-concerns-grow/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>18 Sep 2026 15:55:59 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Arathi Menon]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Aditi Tandon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[apes]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[captive animals]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[exotic species]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[gibbon]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[monkeys]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[pets]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/09/18130613/PHOTO-2026-09-11-16-19-00-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=41030</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Beyond Protected Areas and From the Wild, For Trade]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global and India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Endangered species, Environmental Crime, Health impacts, Monkeys, Primates, Wildlife, Wildlife Trade, Wildlife Trafficking, and Zoos]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[This is Part 2 of a series on exotic pet trade. The series looks at the health impacts, legal challenges and the ecological consequences of keeping exotic wild animals as pets. Part 1 elaborates on how the trade enables zoonoses or zoonotic disease spillovers. Recently, pictures and videos of five orangutan babies in a forest [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[This is Part 2 of a series on exotic pet trade. The series looks at the health impacts, legal challenges and the ecological consequences of keeping exotic wild animals as pets. Part 1 elaborates on how the trade enables zoonoses or zoonotic disease spillovers. Recently, pictures and videos of five orangutan babies in a forest in Odisha, thousands of miles from their real home, were plastered across many screens. As authorities investigate the antecedents of the critically endangered animals and discuss their future, one thing is becoming increasingly clear: international wildlife trafficking is widening its reach, and India is emerging as a destination. Keeping exotic animals and birds as pets, is not new in India. Non-native parrots have long dominated the scene. But keeping them legally involves navigating a complex set of legal procedures. The repertoire of species illegally reaching Indian shores, however, has expanded significantly in recent years. Primates are the new parrots. Gibbons, lemurs, marmosets and macaques, once difficult to find outside their native ranges, are increasingly turning up in seizures linked to the illegal pet trade. Primates are a group of mammals that includes humans, apes, monkeys, lemurs and lorises, generally characterised by grasping hands and feet, forward-facing eyes and relatively large brains. The seizure of an orangutan from an apartment bathroom in Mumbai in 2024, a Tamil actor’s pet Lar gibbon, and the controversy over two lemurs at Vantara highlight the emerging trade. An orangutan rescued by authorities at Yayasan Orangutan Sumatera Lestari – Orangutan Information Centre&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/as-exotic-primates-reach-india-welfare-concerns-grow/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/as-exotic-primates-reach-india-welfare-concerns-grow/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
														</item>
						<item>
					<title>As tigers spill beyond reserves, India rethinks conservation</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/as-tigers-spill-beyond-reserves-india-rethinks-conservation/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/as-tigers-spill-beyond-reserves-india-rethinks-conservation/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>18 Sep 2026 12:04:46 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Arathi Menon]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Mongabay Editor]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[big cats]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cats]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[tiger]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wild Cats]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/09/18110753/Copy-of-2-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=40999</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Beyond Protected Areas]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Big Cats, Biodiversity, Cats, Conservation, Ecology, Environment, Forests, Grazing, Human Wildlife Conflict, Mammals, National Parks, People, Protected Areas, Tigers, Wildlife, and Wildlife Sanctuary]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Forty-five-year-old Mahadeva Gowda was tending to his cotton farm in the village of Badagalapura in the southern Indian state of Karnataka when a tiger lunged at him from behind. He was caught unaware: He says he wasn’t aware that the forest department was trying to capture a tiger roaming through the areas. Before he realised [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Forty-five-year-old Mahadeva Gowda was tending to his cotton farm in the village of Badagalapura in the southern Indian state of Karnataka when a tiger lunged at him from behind. He was caught unaware: He says he wasn’t aware that the forest department was trying to capture a tiger roaming through the areas. Before he realised what was happening, the tiger swiped at his face, severely injuring his eyes and part of his face. After multiple reconstructive surgeries, Gowda has been left to live the rest of his life blinded, without eyes, his mouth only able to open partially, and his speech slurred. His wife, Indrani, says survival is extremely difficult for the family; Gowda was the household’s breadwinner, and now, he can’t work. He’s now become fully dependent on his wife for even his most basic needs. The incident occurred in mid-October 2025. Two weeks later, another farmer, 55-year-old Rajashekarappa, was grazing his cattle in a field when he encountered a tiger. It was fatal. Badagalapura and other villages that regularly report tiger encounters sit on the edge of the forest, placing them within what the forest department considers a “tiger landscape.” “Tigers have been present in this landscape for centuries and they constantly move here,” says S. Prabhakaran, who served as conservator of forests and oversaw operations at Karnataka’s Bandipur Tiger Reserve until earlier this year. The 1,456-square-kilometre park is home to between 154 and 175 tigers, according to a 2024 estimate by India’s National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA).&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/as-tigers-spill-beyond-reserves-india-rethinks-conservation/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
														</item>
						<item>
					<title>Indus Waters Treaty needs modernisation, experts say amid deadlock</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/indus-water-treaty-needs-modernisation-experts-say-amid-deadlock/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/indus-water-treaty-needs-modernisation-experts-say-amid-deadlock/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>17 Sep 2026 17:45:59 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Simrin Sirur]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Aditi Tandon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Hydroelectric Power]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Water conflict]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[water crisis]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/09/17161710/AP6804011606-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=40983</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Climate Connections]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global and India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Climate Change, Dams, Environmental Politics, Politics, Rivers, and Water]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[On August 31, the Permanent Court of Arbitration — an intergovernmental body headquartered in The Hague — passed an order that said India could not unilaterally retreat from or cast aside the Indus Waters Treaty, a 66-year-old pact governing water sharing between India and Pakistan. India rejected the court’s decision shortly after, prolonging the deadlock [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[On August 31, the Permanent Court of Arbitration — an intergovernmental body headquartered in The Hague — passed an order that said India could not unilaterally retreat from or cast aside the Indus Waters Treaty, a 66-year-old pact governing water sharing between India and Pakistan. India rejected the court’s decision shortly after, prolonging the deadlock between both countries and throwing the Treaty’s future into a state of flux. The PCA’s order was issued more than a year after India placed the agreement in “abeyance” following attacks by militants that India said were linked to Pakistan-based groups. “India&#8217;s position on the Indus Waters Treaty is consistent. The IWT stands in abeyance in response to Pakistan&#8217;s continued sponsorship of cross-border terrorism. Pakistan must credibly and irrevocably abjure its support for cross-border terrorism,” Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal told the press in July. The PCA said it contemplated the meaning of India’s decision, since the word “abeyance” finds no recognition in the Treaty. It concluded that none of the grounds publicly cited by India “could justify suspension or termination of the Treaty,” and that it “remains fully in force, and India must observe its obligations.” Though famously having remained intact through three wars, the ongoing suspension has reinforced the need to modernise the agreement, experts say, so it can account for geopolitical differences, climate impacts, and changing water consumption habits. “If rights under an agreement cannot be exercised within a period of time without uncertainty, then it means that process isn’t&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/indus-water-treaty-needs-modernisation-experts-say-amid-deadlock/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
														</item>
						<item>
					<title>Centre tightens grip over mineral taxation, states cry foul</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/centre-tightens-grip-over-mineral-taxation-states-cry-foul/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/centre-tightens-grip-over-mineral-taxation-states-cry-foul/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>11 Sep 2026 12:49:20 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Vishal Kumar Jain]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Shailesh Shrivastava]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[minerals]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/09/11112041/Alok-Putul-Hasdeo-coal-block-4-1200x800-1-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=40861</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Just Transitions]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Deforestation, Energy, Environment, Environmental Law, Environmental Politics, Forests, Indigenous Peoples, Indigenous Rights, Land Rights, and Mining]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Among the 12 bills passed during the Monsoon Session of Parliament concluded in August, the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026 (MMDR Amendment Bill) has drawn the most opposition. The bill — which has far-reaching implications for Centre-State relations and the federal structure — was introduced in the Lok Sabha on August [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Among the 12 bills passed during the Monsoon Session of Parliament concluded in August, the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026 (MMDR Amendment Bill) has drawn the most opposition. The bill — which has far-reaching implications for Centre-State relations and the federal structure — was introduced in the Lok Sabha on August 10 and passed by a voice vote within two minutes on August 12. The statement of objects and reasons accompanying the Bill states that centre has assumed control over the regulation of mines and the development of minerals under Section 2 of the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957, “in view of the larger public interest.” These amendments significantly alter the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957, shifting authority over mineral-bearing land from states to the Union Government. States can no longer impose any tax, cess or levy on such land, whether based on mineral quantity, prices, royalty or any other basis, other than the terms or restrictions prescribed by the Centre. States had won this right to levy taxes following a 2024 Supreme Court ruling, which also ordered them to recover outstanding dues in 12 installments starting April 1, 2025. However, states will not be required to return the amounts already collected. Opposition parties allege that mining-rich states will suffer a revenue loss following the amendment to the MMDR Act. A bauxite yard in Lohardaga, Jharkhand. Image by Vishal Kumar Jain/Mongabay. The Ministry of Mines maintains that the amendment will&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/centre-tightens-grip-over-mineral-taxation-states-cry-foul/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<title>Nepal’s flood disaster puts its hydropower-first strategy, exports to the test</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/nepals-flood-disaster-puts-its-hydropower-first-strategy-exports-to-the-test/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/nepals-flood-disaster-puts-its-hydropower-first-strategy-exports-to-the-test/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>10 Sep 2026 15:00:58 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Rudra Pangeni]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Mongabay Editor]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Flash flood]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Nepal]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/09/10141820/nepal-flood-2026-3-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=40837</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Climate Connections]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global, Himalayas, and India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Cities and Towns, Climate Change, Climate Change Adaptation, Dams, Environment, Extreme Weather Events, Floods, Glacial Lake Outburst Flood, Glaciers, Global Warming, Himalayas, Hydroelectric power, Impacts of Climate Change, Mountains, Natural Resources, Renewable Energy, and Sustainability]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Nepal’s long-held policy of harnessing hydroelectricity and using it for economic growth has met new challenges: potential catastrophic floods in the snow-fed rivers amid rising global temperatures. The August 26 floods that originated on the Nepal-China border, and that knocked out around 10% of installed power from the national grid, has prompted a debate on [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Nepal’s long-held policy of harnessing hydroelectricity and using it for economic growth has met new challenges: potential catastrophic floods in the snow-fed rivers amid rising global temperatures. The August 26 floods that originated on the Nepal-China border, and that knocked out around 10% of installed power from the national grid, has prompted a debate on whether Nepal should rethink its overall hydropower strategy or just adopt better-engineered plants. Amid this, the flood could jeopardise the country’s clean energy targets and push it to adopt more solar power. Immediate impacts The recent flash flood crippled a combined installed generation capacity of 281 megawatts, including a solar power plant, and damaged four other under-construction projects, totaling a capacity of 700 MW. One of the oldest hydroelectric plants, the 14.1-MW Devighat Hydroelectric Plant, commissioned 42 years ago, was wiped out. Further downstream, the flood badly damaged a 25-MW solar power plant, according to data compiled by Mongabay from official sources. Similarly, with a hub of a transmission line washed away on the Trishuli river’s banks, another 150 MW of power from different power plants is cut off from the national grid system. Transmission lines, including a substation on the Trishuli riverbank, were also destroyed. While officials are assessing the damage, estimates put losses at hundreds of billions of Nepali rupees, according to media reports. They say they can’t yet provide timelines for when the affected projects will resume generation. Around 983 engineers and workers are feared trapped inside the tunnels or power houses&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/nepals-flood-disaster-puts-its-hydropower-first-strategy-exports-to-the-test/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<title>Your exotic pet could be putting your health at risk</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/your-exotic-pet-could-be-putting-your-health-at-risk/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/your-exotic-pet-could-be-putting-your-health-at-risk/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>10 Sep 2026 12:56:39 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Arathi Menon]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Aditi Tandon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[disease]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[exotic species]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[zoonoses]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Zoonotic disease]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/09/10105159/AP18210287107497-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=40817</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Beyond Protected Areas and From the Wild, For Trade]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Environmental Crime, Health impacts, Law Enforcement, Pandemics, Pet Trade, Wildlife, Wildlife Protection Act, Wildlife Trade, Wildlife Trafficking, and Zoos]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[This is Part 1 of a series on exotic pet trade. The series looks at the health impacts, legal challenges and the ecological consequences of keeping exotic wild animals as pets. Mumbai-based veterinarian Dr. Rina Dev was hospitalised for four days recently with a lung infection. “I hope it’s not something from the parrots I [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[This is Part 1 of a series on exotic pet trade. The series looks at the health impacts, legal challenges and the ecological consequences of keeping exotic wild animals as pets. Mumbai-based veterinarian Dr. Rina Dev was hospitalised for four days recently with a lung infection. “I hope it’s not something from the parrots I was treating,” she told Mongabay-India after being discharged from the hospital. Dr. Dev is an avian and exotic animal veterinarian who works closely with the forest department to treat imported and seized exotic animals involved in the wildlife trade. Her concerns are valid. Avian chlamydiosis, or psittacosis, is caused by the bacterium Chlamydia psittaci and is a common infection among people who handle birds, earning it the nickname “bird handler’s disease”. A 2024 case from India describes a man contracting the infection after exposure to his pet parrot. In 1994, customs officers in Belgium contracted chlamydiosis after being exposed to infected parakeets. Multiple such documented cases link wildlife trade to human infection. A comprehensive review of psittacosis by the ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute in 2021 describes avian chlamydiosis as a “neglected disease” with “critical zoonotic potential”. Pet trade link to zoonosis Zoonoses, or zoonotic diseases, entered the ordinary Indian’s wellness lexicon when the COVID-19 pandemic exposed how pathogens can jump from animals to humans, causing serious medical consequences and, in some cases, a pandemic that can literally bring the world to a standstill. The wildlife pet trade, especially the trade in exotic animals imported or&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/your-exotic-pet-could-be-putting-your-health-at-risk/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/your-exotic-pet-could-be-putting-your-health-at-risk/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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						<item>
					<title>Snow leopards and their survival in changing times [Book Review]</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/snow-leopards-and-their-survival-in-changing-times-book-review/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/snow-leopards-and-their-survival-in-changing-times-book-review/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>08 Sep 2026 16:06:17 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Usha Rai]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Renuka Kulkarni]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[book review]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[snow leopard]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/09/08142945/DSC_0942-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=40779</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Beyond Protected Areas]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Himalayas and India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Big Cats, Biodiversity, Cats, Conservation, Ecology, Endangered species, Environment, Himalayas, In-situ conservation, Mammals, Mountains, Wildlife, and Wildlife Sanctuary]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[If you want to know all about snow leopards, their range, food, love life, fight for survival in the fast changing high mountain landscape, impact of climate change and the struggle of scientists to get accurate figures on their population and spread, Kulbhushansingh Suryawanshi’s The Ghost of the Mountains is a must read. It is [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[If you want to know all about snow leopards, their range, food, love life, fight for survival in the fast changing high mountain landscape, impact of climate change and the struggle of scientists to get accurate figures on their population and spread, Kulbhushansingh Suryawanshi’s The Ghost of the Mountains is a must read. It is a fascinating, extremely well written book that blends research with graphic description of the landscape and allows us to witness a creature few have been privileged to see. “A flagship species of Himalayan conservation, snow leopards are key to preserving an austere, delicate ecosystem,” the book says. It has taken Suryawanshi 20 years to study the ‘ghost of the mountains,’ distributed in mountainous terrain of 12 countries that straddle the Himalayas and Central Asia. Despite the fast changing pace of development, the story of the snow leopard is one of hope. Snow leopards “are shy and their silvery-brown and white coats, marked with dark rosettes, work like magic cloaks offering good camouflage that enable them to disappear like smoke. They have furry tails, the longest of any cats, which they wrap around their bodies like mufflers on cold nights. The tails also work like the balancing pole of a tight rope walker as they manoeuvre around exposed cliffs. Their thick, wide paws, lined with fur, act like snow shoes and their unusually large nostrils help them warm the cold air they breathe and their small rounded ears minimise heat loss”. The author, who travelled across&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/snow-leopards-and-their-survival-in-changing-times-book-review/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/snow-leopards-and-their-survival-in-changing-times-book-review/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
														</item>
						<item>
					<title>Little is known about this flycatcher that migrates across the country every year</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/little-is-known-about-this-flycatcher-that-migrates-across-the-country-every-year/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/little-is-known-about-this-flycatcher-that-migrates-across-the-country-every-year/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>07 Sep 2026 11:19:42 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Hirra Azmat]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Priyanka Shankar]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[birding]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[endemic species]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[migration]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[migratory birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[research]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/09/07085505/Kashmir-flycatcher-faizan-1-scaled-e1788751537804-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=40727</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Beyond Protected Areas]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India and Jammu and Kashmir]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Birds, Conservation, Ecosystem services, Migration, and Research]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Every spring, as new leaves emerge on Parrotia, walnut and other trees across the temperate forests of Kashmir, a small traveller returns from thousands of kilometres away. Barely larger than a sparrow, the Kashmir flycatcher (Ficedula subrubra) undertakes a long journey from the hills of southern India and Sri Lanka to breed in the mountains [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Every spring, as new leaves emerge on Parrotia, walnut and other trees across the temperate forests of Kashmir, a small traveller returns from thousands of kilometres away. Barely larger than a sparrow, the Kashmir flycatcher (Ficedula subrubra) undertakes a long journey from the hills of southern India and Sri Lanka to breed in the mountains of the western Himalaya. But its migration route, stopover locations and winter ecology are still a mystery to scientists. The males of the species are easily recognised by their rich orange throat and breast that contrast with a dark head and upperparts, while females are more subdued in colour. The migratory songbird typically arrives in Kashmir during late April and early May, when the forests become rich in insect prey. “They are closely associated with mature, temperate broad-leaved forests of the western Himalaya,” shares Khursheed Ahmad, a professor and senior scientist at the Division of Wildlife Sciences, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology-Kashmir. Ahmad is supervising an ongoing research project on the Kashmir flycatcher in North-Western Himalayas. During the breeding season, the flycatcher prefers relatively undisturbed forests dominated by horse chestnut, black locust, Parrotia (Parrotiopsis jacquemontiana), walnut, elm and other broadleaf species, often with a well-developed understorey and dense canopy. The flycatcher is also found on forest edges and in clearings and streamside woodlands where insect abundance is high. Endemic to the Indian subcontinent, its restricted breeding range, small population and ongoing habitat loss make the species vulnerable according to the IUCN Red List,&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/little-is-known-about-this-flycatcher-that-migrates-across-the-country-every-year/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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						<item>
					<title>Crop-residue burning, a major contributor to black carbon pollution: Study</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/crop-residue-burning-a-major-contributor-to-black-carbon-pollution-study/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/crop-residue-burning-a-major-contributor-to-black-carbon-pollution-study/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>03 Sep 2026 17:11:55 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Nikhil Sreekandan]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Arathimenon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[crop]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Crop residue]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[farm]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[farming]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Stubble burning]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Sustainable agriculture]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/09/03162644/AP21322310236130-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=40673</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Just Transitions]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Air Pollution, Carbon emissions, Cities and Towns, Clean Energy, Coal, Energy, Environment, Fossil Fuels, Green Energy, Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Health impacts, Industry, and Pollution]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Stubble burning, or crop-residue burning, has been known to contribute to the seasonal smog across northern India, especially in the Indo-Gangetic Plain region. Despite directions issued by the National Green Tribunal in 2015 to prevent agricultural residue burning, biomass burning remains a seasonal activity in states such as Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, and Rajasthan, [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Stubble burning, or crop-residue burning, has been known to contribute to the seasonal smog across northern India, especially in the Indo-Gangetic Plain region. Despite directions issued by the National Green Tribunal in 2015 to prevent agricultural residue burning, biomass burning remains a seasonal activity in states such as Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, and Rajasthan, contributing to the region’s air pollution. A new study by researchers from IIT, New Delhi, has quantified the impact of crop-residue burning on particulate air pollution, particularly black carbon, commonly known as soot, that is produced when carbon-containing fuels are not burned completely. The study found that emissions from crop-residue burning in rural Punjab deteriorate air quality across the Indo-Gangetic Plain (IGP) and in downwind metropolitan cities such as Delhi, due to the transport of pollutants by prevailing winds. Results from real-time measurements at an agricultural-field site in Kheral village in rural Punjab showed that crop-residue burning contributed, on average, 48% to the total black carbon during the post-monsoon period, and periodically exceeded 90% during active burning hours. The study was conducted during October and November, the peak season for crop-residue burning in North India after rice harvest. A dominant source of black carbon “For the study, we mainly focused on black carbon levels and their dependence on stubble burning,” said Ajit Kumar, a Ph.D. researcher at IIT Delhi and one of the paper’s authors. Black carbon is a short-lived, carbon-rich component of PM2.5 (particulate matter smaller than 2.5 micrometres), Kumar said. A mobile monitoring&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/crop-residue-burning-a-major-contributor-to-black-carbon-pollution-study/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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						<item>
					<title>El Niño brings drought declaration into sharper focus</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/el-nino-brings-drought-declaration-into-sharper-focus/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/el-nino-brings-drought-declaration-into-sharper-focus/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>03 Sep 2026 15:43:14 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Simrin Sirur]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Kundan Pandey]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Climate disaster]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[disaster]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[El Niño]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[farming]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural disaster]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/09/03104144/AP649388761550-scaled-e1788412383893-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=40639</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Climate Connections]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Climate Change, Climate Change Adaptation, Drought, Environment, Extreme Weather Events, Food, Global Warming, Impacts of Climate Change, Villages, and Water]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Despite government assurances of adequate preparations, the looming El Niño has cast an uncertain shadow over crop productivity in India. So far, there has been a rainfall deficit of 14% over the country since the beginning of the monsoon season, according to the Crop Weather Watch Group under the Department of Agriculture. The El Niño [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Despite government assurances of adequate preparations, the looming El Niño has cast an uncertain shadow over crop productivity in India. So far, there has been a rainfall deficit of 14% over the country since the beginning of the monsoon season, according to the Crop Weather Watch Group under the Department of Agriculture. The El Niño is expected to gain strength over the second half of the monsoon season (August-September), the India Meteorological Department confirmed. The latest kharif crop sown area report shows a reduction of 13 lakh (1.3 million) hectares in the sown area of paddy, the dominant kharif crop, compared to last year. In anticipation of the El Niño’s impacts, the Indian Council on Agricultural Research (ICAR) put out an advisory instructing district-level farming research centres – Krishi Vigyan Kendras — to act opportunistically, distributing climate resilient seeds, disseminating advisories, and providing resources on fodder conservation. Even so, drought conditions have led to vocal demands for relief from several parts of the country, including Gujarat and Karnataka, putting the spotlight on the gaps between drought preparedness, detection and declaration. According to the India Drought Monitor, a tool developed by researchers from the Water and Climate Lab at IIT Gandhinagar, nearly 40% of the country is facing abnormal, moderate, or severe levels of dryness as of August 24, based on select hydrometeorological indicators alone. How droughts are declared India’s drought declaration process is dictated by the 2016 Manual for Drought Management, drafted by the Department of Agriculture under the Union&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/el-nino-brings-drought-declaration-into-sharper-focus/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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						<item>
					<title>Reduced exposure to nature is linked to immune system diseases [Commentary]</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/reduced-exposure-to-nature-is-linked-to-immune-system-diseases-commentary/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/reduced-exposure-to-nature-is-linked-to-immune-system-diseases-commentary/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>03 Sep 2026 15:13:59 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Ayisha FarseenaIrfan Shakeer]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Priyanka Shankar]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[disease]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[health]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[human health]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[public health]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[urban areas]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[urbanisation]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/09/03143959/Golpata_Forest_Taki_3-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=40655</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Beyond Protected Areas]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Cities and Towns, Ecosystem services, Environment, Forests, Health impacts, Human Rights, and People]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Homo sapiens appeared roughly 300,000 years ago. As outlined in naturalist Charles Darwin’s book On the Origin of Species, this long transition occurred through continuous evolutionary pressures, shaped by interactions with surrounding microbial communities and natural environments. As species struggled and evolved within their ecosystems over time, natural selection shaped not only their physical traits [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Homo sapiens appeared roughly 300,000 years ago. As outlined in naturalist Charles Darwin’s book On the Origin of Species, this long transition occurred through continuous evolutionary pressures, shaped by interactions with surrounding microbial communities and natural environments. As species struggled and evolved within their ecosystems over time, natural selection shaped not only their physical traits but also their internal immune system. This evolutionary process equipped organisms with a sensitive and a complex system to combat pathogens and foreign agents encountered in their natural environments. Ultimately, it is fair to say that human existence is the direct product of nature shaping our biology. The long-standing relationship among humans, microbes, and their shared environment was double-edged, yet they complemented each other. However, driven by rapid urbanisation and shifting lifestyles, human populations are slowly becoming disconnected with nature. Extensive scientific research and data collection have demonstrated the adverse effects of this ecological disconnect on the human immune system, particularly among recent generations of children, in the form of immune-mediated inflammatory diseases (IMIDs). Multiple factors impact inflammatory diseases Over the past two decades, the rising incidence (new patients) of immune-mediated inflammatory diseases (IMIDs) has drawn increasing attention from global researchers and policymakers. These are heterogeneous groups of inflammatory pathologies of multifactorial etiology (conditions caused by multiple factors) and involve either simultaneously or sequentially more organs. Some of the common examples are Crohn&#8217;s disease, ulcerative colitis, psoriatic arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, axial spondyloarthritis, psoriasis, multiple sclerosis, type 1 diabetes, and asthma. Unlike diseases caused by infectious&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/09/reduced-exposure-to-nature-is-linked-to-immune-system-diseases-commentary/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<title>Genetic blueprint of four Asian hornbills offers new tool for hornbill research</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/genetic-blueprint-of-four-asian-hornbills-offer-new-tool-for-hornbill-research/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/genetic-blueprint-of-four-asian-hornbills-offer-new-tool-for-hornbill-research/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>31 Aug 2026 11:40:36 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Nikhil Sreekandan]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Aditi Tandon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[gene]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[genetics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[genome]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/08/31102922/Great_Hornbill_Flock_Valparai_Tamil_Nadu_Western_Ghats_DSCN3369-scaled-e1788152726315-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=40557</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Almost Famous Species]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Birds, Conservation, Endangered species, Evolution, Technology, Technology and Conservation, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Scientists have generated a reference genome, a genetic structure model, for four threatened Asian hornbill species. The high-quality genome assemblies were generated for the great hornbill, rufous-necked hornbill, Malabar-pied hornbill and wreathed hornbill by researchers from the Nature Conservation Foundation, Mysore and CSIR-Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB), Hyderabad. “My research interest is [in] [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Scientists have generated a reference genome, a genetic structure model, for four threatened Asian hornbill species. The high-quality genome assemblies were generated for the great hornbill, rufous-necked hornbill, Malabar-pied hornbill and wreathed hornbill by researchers from the Nature Conservation Foundation, Mysore and CSIR-Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB), Hyderabad. “My research interest is [in] understanding how wildlife responds to their changing environment,” says corresponding author of the research paper Pooja Pawar, who has studied great hornbills (Buceros bicornis) in both protected areas and in coffee plantations. For her master’s dissertation, Pawar compared the behaviour and breeding biology of these large, majestic birds in protected areas in the Anamalai Hills and the human-modified landscape of Valparai, Tamil Nadu. Then, for her Ph.D. at the Nature Conservation Foundation and Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Pawar expanded the scope of her research to investigate how climatic, geographic, and anthropogenic factors have influenced hornbill populations across regions and geological epochs. To help answer these questions, the behavioural biologist turned to genomics, the study of an organism’s complete genetic structure. “Genomics allowed me to ask these questions at much larger temporal and geographic scales,” Pawar says. “I could go back in time, to when the species originated or diverged from its sister species, and not restrict [my research] to the Western Ghats or northeast India.” But before she could do that, Pawar first had to create baseline genomic data for Asian hornbill species, which was largely missing despite their flagship conservation status. Whole-genome information&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/genetic-blueprint-of-four-asian-hornbills-offer-new-tool-for-hornbill-research/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<title>Crime content on social media threatens wildlife safety</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/crime-content-on-social-media-threatens-wildlife-safety/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/crime-content-on-social-media-threatens-wildlife-safety/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>27 Aug 2026 17:58:48 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Vandana K.]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Arathimenon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[pets]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[wildlife crime]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/08/27174553/crime-reels-collage-Edited-1-scaled-e1787832976456-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=40507</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Beyond Protected Areas]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Archives, Biodiversity, Conservation, Endangered species, Environmental Crime, Poaching, Wildlife, Wildlife Protection Act, Wildlife Trade, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[In 2025, P.M. Muthanna came across an Instagram reel that showed someone demonstrating how to capture wild animals. This was an activity that could not only harm wildlife but also violate wildlife protection laws. Muthanna, who heads field conservation at Centre for Wildlife Studies (CWS), a wildlife organisation based in Karnataka, couldn’t ignore the reel [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[In 2025, P.M. Muthanna came across an Instagram reel that showed someone demonstrating how to capture wild animals. This was an activity that could not only harm wildlife but also violate wildlife protection laws. Muthanna, who heads field conservation at Centre for Wildlife Studies (CWS), a wildlife organisation based in Karnataka, couldn’t ignore the reel that seemed to normalise illegal handling of animals. “My co-workers and I started checking and compiling such videos being circulated on social media, particularly Instagram,” he says. Among the reels he stumbled upon were those showing a civet cat stuck in a jaw trap, which had over 25,000 likes; people hunting monitor lizards; a jaw trap manufacturing workshop, and more. In February 2026, he sent a letter to the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB), a government body that combats organised wildlife crime, urging it to take action against eight Instagram accounts that show and sell jaw traps, devices that injure or harm animals, and demonstrate the illegal hunting of monitor lizards, which are protected under Schedule I of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972. These kinds of reels are playing on phone screens across India. Showcased as ordinary moments from the creators’ lives, the content ranges from what an illegally-kept pet Indian star tortoise eats to going on a hunting trip. Cyber-enabled wildlife crime in India is a rapidly emerging threat which is subtle, sophisticated, and sometimes hard to identify, says Pradipty Bhardwaj, a Ph.D. scholar researching the adequacy of Indian law to combat such crimes.&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/crime-content-on-social-media-threatens-wildlife-safety/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<title>Audit exposes fundamental flaws in Green India Mission&#8217;s execution</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/audit-exposes-fundamental-flaws-in-green-india-missions-execution/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/audit-exposes-fundamental-flaws-in-green-india-missions-execution/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>24 Aug 2026 19:47:08 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Simrin Sirur]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Kundan Pandey]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/08/24190647/AP26208520244982-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=40378</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Beyond Protected Areas]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Carbon emissions, Carbon Offset, Carbon Sequestration, Climate Change, Conservation, Ecology, Ecosystem services, Environment, Forestry, Forests, Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Habitat Loss, Plantations, Reforestation, and Trees]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[An audit report of the Green India Mission, one of the eight missions under the National Action Plan on Climate Change, found that funds were consistently underutilised and that progress under the mission “remains negligible.” The Green India Mission aims to enhance forest cover, improve the quality of forest cover and ecosystem services, and scale [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[An audit report of the Green India Mission, one of the eight missions under the National Action Plan on Climate Change, found that funds were consistently underutilised and that progress under the mission “remains negligible.” The Green India Mission aims to enhance forest cover, improve the quality of forest cover and ecosystem services, and scale carbon sequestration in India. In 2011, the mission aimed to fulfil these goals in 10 million hectares (mha) of land over a period of 10 years. In 2014, the Mission included afforestation on 2.8 mha of land by 2018 as a goal. But the mission’s performance has been set back by “fundamental weaknesses in planning and design as well as deficiencies in execution and monitoring,” says an audit report by the Comptroller Auditor General of India (CAG), submitted to Parliament on August 12. According to the audit, out of the targeted 2.8 million hectares, afforestation interventions were made in approximately 0.15 million hectares, which is just about 5% of the goal area. Pooja Choksi, an ecologist and founder of Ficus Research Consulting said the CAG&#8217;s report was a timely &#8220;wake up call.&#8221; &#8220;It is an indication that we need to do things radically differently if we want to achieve our land use and forestry related targets, especially in a ecologically and socially meaningful way that ensures the longevity of these plantation efforts,&#8221; she said. Apart from poor implementation, the CAG found that activities carried out eroded the mission’s core objectives of restoring ecosystems at a&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/audit-exposes-fundamental-flaws-in-green-india-missions-execution/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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						<item>
					<title>A study on African Bermuda-grass highlights gaps in bioinvasion policy</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/a-study-on-african-bermuda-grass-highlights-gaps-in-bioinvasion-policy/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/a-study-on-african-bermuda-grass-highlights-gaps-in-bioinvasion-policy/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>24 Aug 2026 18:59:06 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Lekha Bandopadhyay]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Renuka Kulkarni]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[invasive]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[invasive plants]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[invasive species]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/08/24155323/Image-5-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=40384</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Beyond Protected Areas]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global and India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Conservation, Ecology, Environment, Forests, Himalayas, Natural Resources, Plants, and Western Ghats]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[An alien surprise was waiting for Kuntal Saha, a taxonomist from the Forest Research Institute, Dehradun, when he spotted some grass after stepping down from his vehicle near Tangmarg, a scenic town in the Baramulla District of Jammu and Kashmir in September 2024. “It was my first visit to Kashmir. I was simply enjoying the [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[An alien surprise was waiting for Kuntal Saha, a taxonomist from the Forest Research Institute, Dehradun, when he spotted some grass after stepping down from his vehicle near Tangmarg, a scenic town in the Baramulla District of Jammu and Kashmir in September 2024. “It was my first visit to Kashmir. I was simply enjoying the breathtaking scenery when I noticed an unfamiliar Cynodon population growing along the roadside, says Saha, adding that they had earlier seen the grass species near the houseboat where they were staying in Srinagar. Grasses of the genus Cynodon are valued for their use as fodder and in developing turf for lawns. The genus also includes a sacred grass (Cynodon dactylon) called doob, durba, dubari etc. in Indian regional languages. Saha, however, spotted something distinct and this eventually became one of the most important collections of their field trip in 2024, part of a decades-long survey which began in 1995 when Saha’s mentor, Indian Forest Service Officer Manoj Chandran (now retired), collected an unknown Cynodon species from Tamil Nadu during his botanical explorations. “At that time, the specimen could not be fully appreciated because of its close resemblance to other Cynodon species,” explains Saha. Over the years, they kept collecting specimens across Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Uttarakhand and Jammu and Kashmir. Based on this survey, the researchers recently reported that Cynodon nlemfuensis, the African Bermuda grass, which is native to Central and East Africa and introduced to India, has been naturalised in the Himalayas and the Western&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/a-study-on-african-bermuda-grass-highlights-gaps-in-bioinvasion-policy/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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						<item>
					<title>India started measuring climate readiness of cities, then stalled [Commentary]</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/india-started-measuring-climate-readiness-of-cities-then-stalled-commentary/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/india-started-measuring-climate-readiness-of-cities-then-stalled-commentary/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>21 Aug 2026 15:31:18 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Ravikant Joshi]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Kundan Pandey]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[City Climate Action Plan]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[climate]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[climate action]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Climate Action Plan]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/08/21132802/AP23168434501284-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=40359</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Climate Connections]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Climate Change and Climate Change Adaptation]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Cities are the source of more than 70% of the world’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. They are also home to more than half of humanity. As a focal point of human activity, cities are both major contributors to global warming and crucial actors in addressing it. Climate change impacts cities through more frequent extreme weather [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Cities are the source of more than 70% of the world’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. They are also home to more than half of humanity. As a focal point of human activity, cities are both major contributors to global warming and crucial actors in addressing it. Climate change impacts cities through more frequent extreme weather events, heatwaves, sea-level rise, and food and water insecurity, which worsen social and economic disparities, especially in developing countries. Cities are key to combating climate change worldwide because many of the measures needed to cut emissions and build resilience are implemented at the local level, even though climate policies, programmes and schemes are often formulated at the national level. City Climate Action Plans are being prepared, implemented, monitored, evaluated and recalibrated, with stakeholders involved in their design and implementation. Growing climate risks Indian cities have started facing diverse climate change impacts, such as flooding, heatwaves, water scarcity and air pollution. For example, 21 major cities in India, including Delhi, Bengaluru and Hyderabad, are heading towards complete groundwater depletion, affecting access for 100 million people. An Indian Institute for Human Settlements (IIHS) report prepared for the Fifteenth Finance Commission highlights flooding as the most widespread hazard affecting Indian cities and settlements. Some regions, particularly the plains of the Ganga and Brahmaputra, are impacted every year. Of India’s 7,500-kilometre coastline, 5,700 km is exposed to cyclones and flooding. About 40% of India’s population lives within 100 km of the coast, mostly in densely populated urban areas. Studies&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/india-started-measuring-climate-readiness-of-cities-then-stalled-commentary/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<title>Understanding the true value of forest ecosystem services</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/understanding-the-true-value-of-forest-ecosystem-services/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/understanding-the-true-value-of-forest-ecosystem-services/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>20 Aug 2026 17:08:39 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Sharmila Vaidyanathan]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Arathimenon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/08/20140801/pexels-shootsaga-35668007-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=40331</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Nature-based Solutions]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Carbon Offset, Carbon Sequestration, Climate Change Mitigation, Conservation, Ecosystem services, Environment, Forests, Global Warming, Natural Resources, Nature-based Climate Solutions, Payment for Ecosystem Services, and Rainforests]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[India’s forests provide annual ecosystem services worth $2.5 trillion, highlights a new study published in Environmental and Sustainability Indicators. Titled Contribution of forest ecosystem services in India using meta-regression approach, the study reveals that the per-hectare value of ecosystem benefits from India’s forests is about $31,000 per year. Among forest types, tropical dry deciduous forests [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[India’s forests provide annual ecosystem services worth $2.5 trillion, highlights a new study published in Environmental and Sustainability Indicators. Titled Contribution of forest ecosystem services in India using meta-regression approach, the study reveals that the per-hectare value of ecosystem benefits from India’s forests is about $31,000 per year. Among forest types, tropical dry deciduous forests provide the highest economic value at $703 billion, annually. Defined as the direct and indirect benefits that bolster human wellbeing and survival, ecosystem services are further classified into provisioning, regulating, cultural and supporting services. With regard to forests, provisioning services include goods obtained from forest lands, such as timber, food and medicinal plants. Regulating services include carbon sequestration and soil protection, while cultural services include recreational benefits and sacred groves, among others. Supporting services include services such as providing habitats for different species. The authors also examined the economic value of individual services and found that India’s forests provide provisioning, regulating and cultural services worth about $9.64, $12.15 and $17.17 billion, respectively, every year. Supporting services were not analysed in the study. While there is a growing interest in understanding the economic impacts of forest ecosystem services, mainly fuelled by the rise in awareness about the role forests play in climate mitigation and biodiversity conservation, the study highlights the crucial need for incorporating these services into policies and forest conservation measures for better results. “Policymakers increasingly recognise that many of the benefits provided by forests, such as carbon storage, watershed and drought protection, are not&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/understanding-the-true-value-of-forest-ecosystem-services/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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