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		<title>Mongabay India</title>
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		<link>https://india.mongabay.com/list/kerala/</link>
		<description>India&#039;s environmental science and conservation news</description>
		<lastBuildDate>Thu, 13 Aug 2026 12:28:04 +0000</lastBuildDate>
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					<title>Scientists identify new deep-sea shark species from India’s southwest coast</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/scientists-identify-new-deep-sea-shark-species-from-indias-southwest-coast/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/scientists-identify-new-deep-sea-shark-species-from-indias-southwest-coast/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>04 Aug 2026 12:15:07 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Ananya Singh]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Priyanka Shankar]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[bycatch]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[deep seas]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[fisheries]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[shark]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[trawling]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/08/04130134/A_drona_holotype_image_male-1-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=39826</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Almost Famous Species]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Kerala]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Coast, Conservation, Ecology, Fish, Fishing, New species, Oceans, Overfishing, Positive Environmental, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[A deep-sea catshark caught off Kerala’s coast has now been identified as a new species, highlighting the need for better understanding of deep-sea biodiversity. In 2022, a team of scientists sifting through the bycatch of deep-sea shrimp trawlers came across a black, slender-bodied fish with an angular, pointed snout and striking white eyes. This fish [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[A deep-sea catshark caught off Kerala’s coast has now been identified as a new species, highlighting the need for better understanding of deep-sea biodiversity. In 2022, a team of scientists sifting through the bycatch of deep-sea shrimp trawlers came across a black, slender-bodied fish with an angular, pointed snout and striking white eyes. This fish had been caught at a depth of 400-650 metres at Kollam slope, a continental slope in the southeastern Arabian Sea off Kerala’s coast, designated as an Important Shark and Ray Area. The team confirmed that it belonged to the genus Apristurus — a group of deepwater catsharks — and brought it back to the lab for further examination. Two years later, the researchers collected three additional specimens at Sakthikulangara Fisheries Harbour, Kollam, during monitoring surveys. Through morphological and molecular analyses of the four specimens, the team found that this species was distinct from others within the genus and described it as a new species of deepwater catshark (Apristurus drona) in their paper published earlier this year in Zootaxa. The objective of the study, part of a larger project under the Ministry of Earth Sciences’ Deep Ocean Mission, was to explore the diversity of deep-sea chondrichthyans which are cartilaginous fish such as sharks (Selachimorpha), rays and skates (Batoidea) and chimaeras (Holocephali) and resolve some of the taxonomic confusion around them. “From biodiversity inventory surveys, we have realised that our understanding of deep-sea biodiversity is limited,” said Bineesh K.K., the study’s corresponding author and a scientist at&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/scientists-identify-new-deep-sea-shark-species-from-indias-southwest-coast/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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						<item>
					<title>A fertile landscape at the crossroads of ecology and development [Commentary]</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/a-fertile-landscape-at-the-crossroads-of-ecology-and-development-commentary/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/a-fertile-landscape-at-the-crossroads-of-ecology-and-development-commentary/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>03 Aug 2026 15:47:18 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[C.P. Rajendran]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Aditi Tandon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[farming]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[fisheries]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[invasive plants]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[solution]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/08/03125249/4670487709_c95df8f47d_4k-scaled-e1785742237892-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=39805</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Just Transitions]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Kerala]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change Mitigation, Fish, Fishing, Floods, Lakes, Monsoons, Pollution, Sea Level Rise, Waste management, Water, Water Pollution, and Wetlands]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[The Kuttanad region of Kerala, often celebrated as the &#8220;rice bowl&#8221; of the state, is a landscape of profound beauty and immense ecological significance. Yet, its existence is a delicate balancing act, a testament to both the generative power of nature and the often-destructive ambition of human intervention. This intricate wetland system, a mosaic of [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[The Kuttanad region of Kerala, often celebrated as the &#8220;rice bowl&#8221; of the state, is a landscape of profound beauty and immense ecological significance. Yet, its existence is a delicate balancing act, a testament to both the generative power of nature and the often-destructive ambition of human intervention. This intricate wetland system, a mosaic of lush green paddy fields, labyrinthine canals, and the vast expanse of Vembanad lake, is a geographical marvel that is simultaneously a victim of its own fertility and the relentless pressures of modernisation. Kuttanad is world-renowned for its below-sea-level paddy cultivation and unique brackish-water ecosystem. Alongside this remarkable agricultural practice, the region&#8217;s brackish-water ecosystem supports a thriving inland fisheries sector, with the Vembanad estuary serving as a critical nursery for numerous fish and prawn species. Together, these intertwined livelihoods — agriculture and fisheries — form the economic and cultural backbone of Kuttanad. So distinctive and globally significant is this integrated farming system that the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations has recognised it as a Globally Important Agricultural Heritage System (GIAHS), placing Kuttanad alongside other iconic agricultural landscapes like the terraced rice fields of the Philippines and the saffron fields of Kashmir. Geologically speaking, Kuttanad is a young and dynamic landscape. In the distant past, this region formed part of the shallow coastal shelf of the Arabian Sea. Over millennia, the powerful rivers originating in the Western Ghats, chiefly the Pampa, Achankovil, and Manimala, carried massive loads of silt and alluvium from the&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/08/a-fertile-landscape-at-the-crossroads-of-ecology-and-development-commentary/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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						<item>
					<title>West coast fishers confront ‘ghost gear’ problem</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/west-coast-fishers-confront-ghost-gear-problem/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/west-coast-fishers-confront-ghost-gear-problem/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>23 Jul 2026 10:47:10 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Robert Bociaga]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Mongabay Editor]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[fisheries]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[fishermen]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ghost nets]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Marine Fisheries]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/07/23095213/IMG_5513-2048x1536-1-768x512.jpeg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=39539</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Beyond Protected Areas]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Kerala]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Coast, Environment, Fish, Fishing, Oceans, and Water Pollution]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[In the early light at Thoppumpady fishing harbour in the city of Kochi, coils of blue and green nylon nets lay heaped on the concrete docks, stiff with salt after a long night at sea. Many had been patched and repatched so often that they were barely holding together. Nets too damaged to mend are [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[In the early light at Thoppumpady fishing harbour in the city of Kochi, coils of blue and green nylon nets lay heaped on the concrete docks, stiff with salt after a long night at sea. Many had been patched and repatched so often that they were barely holding together. Nets too damaged to mend are often cut loose offshore. Once they sink, few are ever recovered. Across India’s west coast, lost fishing gear known as “ghost gear” has become a significant source of marine pollution. Nets vanish whole or in fragments, slipping into the waters of the Arabian Sea where they continue trapping fish, turtles and other marine life long after fishers abandon them. India operates one of the world’s largest marine fishing sectors, supporting an estimated 14.5 million livelihoods along more than 7,500 kilometres of coastline. While national estimates are scarce, a 2022 study in the southwestern state of Kerala, where Kochi is located, found that fishers lost, abandoned or discarded about 21% of their fishing gear annually. That’s more than 10 times the global average of 1.82% estimated by another study, which highlights the scale of material entering India’s marine environment. Despite growing concern among researchers and conservationists, India lacks a systematic way to track, retrieve or recycle lost fishing gear, as well as accessible mechanisms to collect and safely dispose of end-of-life nets and other equipment before they are discarded at sea. The government regulates fisheries tightly in many respects — from mesh sizes and seasonal bans&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/west-coast-fishers-confront-ghost-gear-problem/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
														</item>
						<item>
					<title>Tunnel landslide raises fresh questions over mountain development</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/tunnel-landslide-raises-fresh-questions-over-mountain-development/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/tunnel-landslide-raises-fresh-questions-over-mountain-development/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>14 Jul 2026 16:09:56 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[K.A. Shaji]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Arathimenon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/07/14124059/the-incidentsite-768x512.jpeg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=39279</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Climate Connections]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Kerala]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Cities and Towns, Climate Change, Environment, Extreme Weather Events, and Western Ghats]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Less than a month before the second anniversary of the 2024 Wayanad landslides which fundamentally altered public understanding of landslide risks in the country and killed 298 people while leaving many more injured and homeless, another mountain slope collapsed in Wayanad district of Kerala. This time, the slip occurred at the exit section of the [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Less than a month before the second anniversary of the 2024 Wayanad landslides which fundamentally altered public understanding of landslide risks in the country and killed 298 people while leaving many more injured and homeless, another mountain slope collapsed in Wayanad district of Kerala. This time, the slip occurred at the exit section of the under-construction Anakkampoyil-Kalladi-Meppadi twin tunnel project. On July 7, 2026, following intense monsoon rain, a massive slope failure hit the tunnel project near Meenakshi Bridge at Kalladi, near Meppadi. The incident was initially described as a mudslide because a large mass of waterlogged excavated earth swept through the construction site. It was later identified by experts and officials as a landslide that originated higher up the slope, with the accumulated tunnel spoil adding to its destructive force. The collapse buried workers, vehicles and equipment, killing seven people. Two others remained missing after days of search operations. Investigations in progress Investigators are also examining whether the failure was aggravated by the contractor&#8217;s alleged non-compliance with directions to remove the excavated soil accumulated near the site before the monsoon. As per the reading on the hyper-local rain gauge at the research institute, Hume Centre for Ecology and Wildlife Biology near the Kalladi-Meppadi tunnel corridor, the area received about 260 mm of rainfall over the preceding three days, saturating the already unstable hillside before the collapse. According to the district administration, the tragedy unfolded when earth, boulders and debris crashed onto the construction site, trapping workers engaged in the&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/tunnel-landslide-raises-fresh-questions-over-mountain-development/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
														</item>
						<item>
					<title>Major mugger habitats lie outside protected areas</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/study-finds-major-mugger-habitats-lie-outside-protected-areas/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/study-finds-major-mugger-habitats-lie-outside-protected-areas/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>06 Jul 2026 13:11:29 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Sneha Mahale]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Aditi Tandon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[critical habitat]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[crocodiles]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[habitat]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[habitat loss]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[muggers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[urban areas]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[urban wetlands]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[urbanisation]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/07/06111444/A-local-fisherman-and-a-mugger_-the-Kollidam-River_-Jason-Dominic-Gerar-768x512.jpeg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=39004</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Almost Famous Species]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Karnataka, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Conservation, Dams, Habitat Loss, Reptiles, Rivers, and Wetlands]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[From the rocky gorges of Hogenakkal to the coastal marshes of Muthupet, the mugger crocodile has long inhabited the rivers, reservoirs and wetlands of the Kaveri river basin in southern India. A new study estimated that while there are about 2,209 square kilometres of potentially suitable mugger habitat in the river basin, only about 38% [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[From the rocky gorges of Hogenakkal to the coastal marshes of Muthupet, the mugger crocodile has long inhabited the rivers, reservoirs and wetlands of the Kaveri river basin in southern India. A new study estimated that while there are about 2,209 square kilometres of potentially suitable mugger habitat in the river basin, only about 38% falls within the existing protected area network, leaving much of the species&#8217; habitat exposed to human pressures. The study, published in the journal Ecological Applications, assesses mugger habitat across the entire Kaveri (Cauvery) river basin which stretches across parts of Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu and covers about 81,155 sq. km. in southern India. &#8220;The number that stays with me is 38%. Only 38% of the habitat our model identified as potentially suitable for muggers falls within the existing protected area network. That means roughly six in every ten hectares of meaningful mugger habitat is outside any formal protection, unmanaged, unmonitored, and subject to the full range of human pressures,&#8221; says co-author Nikhil Whitaker, the Research Director at Madras Crocodile Bank Trust and Centre for Herpetology. Building a basin-wide picture The mugger is one of India&#8217;s three native crocodilian species and is found in rivers, lakes, reservoirs and marshes across much of the subcontinent. Although populations have been studied in river systems such as the Moyar, Kabini and Amaravati, researchers say conservation planning has lacked a basin-wide understanding of where suitable habitat occurs and what factors shape its distribution. “The CRB (Cauvery River Basin) has&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/07/study-finds-major-mugger-habitats-lie-outside-protected-areas/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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						<item>
					<title>Snake sightings rise even when snakebite deaths fall</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/06/snake-sightings-rise-even-when-snakebite-deaths-fall/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/06/snake-sightings-rise-even-when-snakebite-deaths-fall/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>22 Jun 2026 13:59:01 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Arathi M.R.]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Arathimenon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[extreme heat]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[heat]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Heat impacts]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Heat wave]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[heatwave]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[snakebites]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Snakes]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[urban areas]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[urbanisation]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/06/22103156/3-3-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=38767</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Climate Connections]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Kerala]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animal Behaviour, Biodiversity, Cities and Towns, Climate Change, Human Wildlife Conflict, Impacts of Climate Change, Reptiles, Villages, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Panic struck Kerala this year when eight snakebite deaths were reported from six districts across the state within a span of two months this summer. Six of the eight deaths were reported between April 20 and 26. A constant stream of fear-inducing reports in both the mainstream and social media intensified public anxiety around snakebites. [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Panic struck Kerala this year when eight snakebite deaths were reported from six districts across the state within a span of two months this summer. Six of the eight deaths were reported between April 20 and 26. A constant stream of fear-inducing reports in both the mainstream and social media intensified public anxiety around snakebites. The heightened concern was reflected in the number of calls received by Team SARPA (Snake Awareness, Rescue, Protection App), a network of trained snake rescuers and forest officials. In August 2020, Kerala introduced guidelines for the rescue and release of snakes from human-dominated areas by certified snake rescuers, leading to the formation of the SARPA team and a mobile application. The platform allows residents to report snake sightings and alert nearby rescuers, enabling rapid responses to snake-related incidents, improving documentation, and promoting public awareness of snake safety and conservation. “There are around 3,500 active licensed snake rescuers in the state. But with the intense media attention this year, we started receiving more than 100 calls a day for volunteers, and most of them were panic calls,” says Sandeep Das, research associate at the University of Calicut and SARPA master trainer. “When media focus shifted to election coverage and political developments in the state, the number of calls gradually came down.” “A combination of factors such as the unusually high atmospheric temperatures triggered by the heatwave, the egg-hatching season of venomous snakes such as the Indian cobra, Russell’s viper, and saw-scaled viper led to more human-snake&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/06/snake-sightings-rise-even-when-snakebite-deaths-fall/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<title>Landslide survivors wait for a place to call home</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/06/landslide-survivors-wait-for-a-place-to-call-home/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/06/landslide-survivors-wait-for-a-place-to-call-home/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>17 Jun 2026 17:42:52 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Simrin Sirur]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Priyanka Shankar]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[disaster]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Disaster management]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[landslide]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[landslides]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[relocation]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/06/17143127/DSC4519-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=38614</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Just Transitions]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Kerala]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Environment, Environmental Politics, Human Rights, and Western Ghats]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Almost two years after a massive landslide ripped through her home, Bushara Mujeeb still feels at sea. Between the grief of losing two dozen family members in the disaster and the struggle of supporting those of them who survived, she knows that things will never quite be the same again. But there is something to [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Almost two years after a massive landslide ripped through her home, Bushara Mujeeb still feels at sea. Between the grief of losing two dozen family members in the disaster and the struggle of supporting those of them who survived, she knows that things will never quite be the same again. But there is something to look forward to. She’s been counting down the days till she moves into her new home, built specifically for survivors of the 2024 Wayanad landslide in Kerala. “Since the landslide, organising food, shelter, and clothing has been my biggest preoccupation. We’ve just been living moment to moment, trying to get past that trauma,” she told Mongabay-India in April, sitting in the district headquarters&#8217; community centre. On July 30, 2024, the three wards of Chooralmala, Punchirimattam, and Mundakkai were washed away within minutes when, upstream of the Punnapuzha river, a cascade of rocks and soil came crashing down after days of relentlessly heavy rain. The landslide destroyed 1,500 homes and killed 266 people. It also wiped away 25 hectares of forest and 600 hectares of agricultural land with coffee, tea, and cardamom plantations, destroying a major source of livelihood for affected families. Soon after the disaster struck, the erstwhile Left Democratic Front government-led by Pinarayi Vijayan made plans to build a state-of-the-art township to rehabilitate survivors who lost their homes. More than 100 families were handed keys and titles to their new homes in early April this year. “Moving into the new home will be a&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/06/landslide-survivors-wait-for-a-place-to-call-home/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/06/landslide-survivors-wait-for-a-place-to-call-home/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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						<item>
					<title>Artificial light at night alters foraging behaviour in kites</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/06/artificial-light-at-night-is-altering-foraging-behaviour-in-kites/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/06/artificial-light-at-night-is-altering-foraging-behaviour-in-kites/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>02 Jun 2026 13:30:49 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Nikhil Sreekandan]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Aditi Tandon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[fisheries]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[light pollution]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Marine Fisheries]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[urban biodiversity]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[urban birds]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/06/02115608/52735549020_6404c85225_4k-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=38468</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Almost Famous Species]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Kerala]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animal Behaviour, Biodiversity, Birds, Cities and Towns, Ecology, Environment, Fishing, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Polycarp Joseph has been making annual visits to the Shaktikulangara and Vaddy fishing harbours in Kerala’s Kollam district, since 2019, to track birds. On his visits, Joseph, who is a district head for the Kerala State Annual Heronry Survey, an annual citizen-science monitoring project by the Kerala Bird Monitoring Network (KBM), counts active nests of [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Polycarp Joseph has been making annual visits to the Shaktikulangara and Vaddy fishing harbours in Kerala’s Kollam district, since 2019, to track birds. On his visits, Joseph, who is a district head for the Kerala State Annual Heronry Survey, an annual citizen-science monitoring project by the Kerala Bird Monitoring Network (KBM), counts active nests of the little egret (Egretta garzetta). As part of this monitoring effort, he has visited both harbours after dark to study the effects of nighttime light pollution on these birds. It was on one such visit that he came across a few brahminy kites (Haliastur indus), a “strictly” diurnal (active during the day) raptor with a distinctive bright white head and rump, scavenging late at night at the Vaddy fishing harbour in Kollam. If it were late evening hours, he might have assumed that the kites were returning home or making one last foraging attempt, said Joseph. “The harbour [at night] is like a floodlit stadium, with LED lights in the auction yard and on boats, which allows these kites to perceive prey availability,” he added. On February 5, 2024, from 11 PM until 12:30 AM, Joseph recorded three brahminy kites flying in short circles above the harbour, diving to scoop fish from boats, and snatching discards from fishers. On subsequent nights, too, he observed one or two kites scavenging between 9 and 11 PM. This observation was recorded in a recent paper by a research team, including Joseph. According to the authors, this is the&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/06/artificial-light-at-night-is-altering-foraging-behaviour-in-kites/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/06/artificial-light-at-night-is-altering-foraging-behaviour-in-kites/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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						<item>
					<title>Biomedical waste crosses borders, polluting farmlands</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/05/biomedical-waste-crosses-borders-polluting-farmlands/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/05/biomedical-waste-crosses-borders-polluting-farmlands/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>28 May 2026 17:23:44 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Prasanth Shanmugasundaram]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Priyanka Shankar]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[biomedical waste]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[environment and health]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[health]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[human health]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[public health]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[waste]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/05/28131114/Kerala-Bio-medical-waste-dumped-near-Tirunelveli-Source-Thinakaran-Rajamani-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=38407</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Just Transitions]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Kerala and Tamil Nadu]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Cities and Towns, Environmental Politics, Health impacts, Human Rights, Industry, and Waste management]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Reports of Kerala’s biomedical waste being dumped along the Tamil Nadu border, along with incidents of meat waste and plastic waste being buried in pits across Tamil Nadu’s rural landscapes, have, over the years, become a disturbing routine in news reports. What once appeared as isolated violations has evolved into a pattern. In the last [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Reports of Kerala’s biomedical waste being dumped along the Tamil Nadu border, along with incidents of meat waste and plastic waste being buried in pits across Tamil Nadu’s rural landscapes, have, over the years, become a disturbing routine in news reports. What once appeared as isolated violations has evolved into a pattern. In the last decade, environmentalists estimate that hundreds of mixed waste dumping incidents along the state borders have been recorded, with many more likely unreported. Some of this waste being dumped includes biomedical waste. In certain instances, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has taken suo motu cognisance, initiating proceedings against the Kerala government. In one such case, biomedical waste from a cancer centre in Kerala that had been dumped in Tamil Nadu was ordered to be collected and transported back to Kerala. Yet a critical question remains: why does Kerala’s biomedical waste continue to cross into Tamil Nadu? Kerala’s biomedical waste is being dumped along the Tamil Nadu border. Hundreds of mixed waste dumping incidents have been recorded in the last decade, with many more likely unreported, and that a subset of them contain biomedical waste. Image by Thinakaran Rajamani. Biomedical waste, including syringes and plastic materials, found dumped in Tirunelveli district. Image by Thinakaran Rajamani. In conversations with farmers and residents in affected areas along Tamil Nadu’s border as well as a visit to Kerala’s primary biomedical waste treatment facility, IMAGE, in Palakkad, Mongabay-India found out that the issue is rooted in structural gaps, and not only&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/05/biomedical-waste-crosses-borders-polluting-farmlands/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/05/biomedical-waste-crosses-borders-polluting-farmlands/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
														</item>
						<item>
					<title>Vanishing mango landraces reflect the loss of shared landscapes [Commentary]</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/05/vanishing-mango-landraces-reflect-the-loss-of-shared-landscapes-commentary/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/05/vanishing-mango-landraces-reflect-the-loss-of-shared-landscapes-commentary/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>20 May 2026 18:17:04 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Femi E. Benny]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Priyanka Shankar]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[fruits]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[garden]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[home gardens]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mango]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/05/20155047/18a5ec0f-6c7f-4af7-a416-aabc9536c200-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=38274</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Climate Connections]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Kerala]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Agroecology, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Food, Trees, and Villages]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[In many rural villages of Kerala, the Indigenous mango trees were once more than just a tree. These trees meant shade, season, memory, and public abundance. People named such trees — naattu manga (country mango). The term did not refer to a single botanical variety, but to local mango landraces, trees that had emerged, adapted, [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[In many rural villages of Kerala, the Indigenous mango trees were once more than just a tree. These trees meant shade, season, memory, and public abundance. People named such trees — naattu manga (country mango). The term did not refer to a single botanical variety, but to local mango landraces, trees that had emerged, adapted, and persisted within village landscapes over generations. They stood in homesteads, along roadsides, near paddy fields as well as in school grounds, but its fruits belonged to many. Their ownership was often legible on paper, but in practice their fruits moved across households and compounds. A naattu manga belonged, in a moral sense, to the village. Across Kerala, traditional agroecosystems have been steadily reshaped by land fragmentation, compound walls, real estate pressures, road expansion, and the shift from mixed homesteads to more enclosed forms of landholding. The loss is not only ecological; it is also cultural. When a large old mango tree is cut, a village does not merely lose fruit. It loses a seasonal meeting point, a taste archive, and a lineage of local adaptation that may never be properly named before it disappears. Scientifically, these trees belong to the species Mangifera indica, but socially they belonged to a wider commons. A 2015 biodiversity appraisal described mango as a keystone species of Kerala homestead gardens. Many of these local varieties under M. indica persist only as scattered trees in homesteads rather than as formal orchards. Therefore, to conserve these Indigenous mango varieties from across&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/05/vanishing-mango-landraces-reflect-the-loss-of-shared-landscapes-commentary/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/05/vanishing-mango-landraces-reflect-the-loss-of-shared-landscapes-commentary/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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						<item>
					<title>The changing fate of Kerala’s sacred groves [Commentary]</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/05/the-changing-fate-of-keralas-sacred-groves-commentary/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/05/the-changing-fate-of-keralas-sacred-groves-commentary/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>11 May 2026 18:08:03 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Nibha Namboodiri]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Aditi Tandon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[culture]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sacred groves]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Snakes]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[tradition]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Traditional Knowledge]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/05/11171600/Sarpa_Kavu_By_Manojk-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=38118</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Beyond Protected Areas]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Kerala]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Community based conservation, Conservation, Forests, and Reptiles]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Sacred groves in Kerala are often held up as examples of how tradition can protect biodiversity. For generations, these sarpa kaavus or the traditional sacred groves, survived precisely because they were considered sacred. They were left undisturbed, protected not by law but by belief. But that relationship is beginning to shift. In many parts of [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Sacred groves in Kerala are often held up as examples of how tradition can protect biodiversity. For generations, these sarpa kaavus or the traditional sacred groves, survived precisely because they were considered sacred. They were left undisturbed, protected not by law but by belief. But that relationship is beginning to shift. In many parts of the state, sacred groves are now being altered, reduced or lost,not only because of external pressures such as urbanisation and land-use change, but also because the very rituals meant to sustain them are increasingly being practiced without their ecological context. At the centre of this transformation lies a difficult contradiction: traditions that once protected these landscapes are, in some cases, contributing to their decline. Traditionally associated with serpent worship, sarpa kaavus functioned as informal conservation spaces, preserving native vegetation, water systems and wildlife within otherwise altered landscapes. Protected by belief systems that discouraged disturbance, these groves survived for generations without formal regulation. Yet this protection is now uneven. One such contradiction can be seen in the practice of the ritual kaavu avahana, in which the chaitanya, or sacred essence of a grove, is ritually transferred elsewhere by a tantri (priest). Within the tradition, this is understood as a legitimate continuation of worship. However, in practice, it has often been followed by the clearing of the original grove. A sarpa kaavu at Thirunelli Temple in the Brahmagiri Hills. Sacred groves or sarpa kaavu in Kerala, touted as examples of how tradition can protect biodiversity, are now&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/05/the-changing-fate-of-keralas-sacred-groves-commentary/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/05/the-changing-fate-of-keralas-sacred-groves-commentary/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
														</item>
						<item>
					<title>Making services move with migrants facing climate risks</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/05/making-services-move-with-migrants-facing-climate-risks/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/05/making-services-move-with-migrants-facing-climate-risks/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>01 May 2026 14:13:22 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Mahima Jain]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Arathimenon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[climate-induced migration]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[health]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[heat]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[human health]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[public health]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/04/30220418/banner-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=37965</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Just Transitions]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Kerala]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Cities and Towns, Climate Change, Climate Change Adaptation, Health impacts, Human Rights, and Migration]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[An ambulance-turned-mobile clinic pulls up along the kerb-side of the car park at the bustling Pathalam Junction in Kerala’s Ernakulam district on a March evening. The driver sets up a desk behind the van. This is one of the two Bandhu Clinics, a non-profit that provides primary healthcare services directly to interstate migrant workers and [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[An ambulance-turned-mobile clinic pulls up along the kerb-side of the car park at the bustling Pathalam Junction in Kerala’s Ernakulam district on a March evening. The driver sets up a desk behind the van. This is one of the two Bandhu Clinics, a non-profit that provides primary healthcare services directly to interstate migrant workers and vulnerable communities at their workplaces or residences. Operated by the Kochi-based nonprofit Centre for Migration and Inclusive Development (CMID) and the National Health Mission (NHM), Bandhu Clinic offers a new model of service — mobile healthcare at migrant destinations. Mohammed Mizanur Rahaman, in his 40s, from Murshidabad, West Bengal, is awaiting his turn outside the clinic for a free consultation. “The clinic comes every Monday. I know that I can get a free check-up,” he says. Through the last decade, Rahaman has worked as a construction labourer in Kerala for 10 months every year. He lives in a small tin cabin, along with a dozen others, in a densely packed informal settlement that is hot most of the year. The heat is making him tired, Rahaman says, and expresses hope that the doctor could help him. The mobile Bandhu clinic at Pathalam Junction in Kerala’s Ernakulam district. In 2024, the World Health Organisation recognised the Bandhu Clinics as one of the 140 global experiences promoting refugee and migrant health. Image by Mahima Jain. Reaching out to climate migrants While India has several programmes to provide general support to migrant labour populations, such as food, subsidised&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/05/making-services-move-with-migrants-facing-climate-risks/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/05/making-services-move-with-migrants-facing-climate-risks/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
														</item>
						<item>
					<title>Dung beetles find an unlikely refuge on an urbanising barrier island system</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/05/dung-beetles-find-an-unlikely-refuge-on-an-urbanising-barrier-island-system/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/05/dung-beetles-find-an-unlikely-refuge-on-an-urbanising-barrier-island-system/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>01 May 2026 13:36:55 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Sneha Mahale]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Priyanka Shankar]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[beetles]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Dung beetle]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/05/01131820/width_1118-768x512.jpeg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=37985</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Almost Famous Species]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Kerala]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Coast, Insects, Islands, Oceans, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Barrier islands are narrow strips of land between the sea and the mainland, shaped and reshaped by tides and wind. They shield coastlines from storm surges, support unique biological communities and play an important role in nutrient cycling. A new study focuses on one such barrier island system in Kerala to examine dung beetles, insects [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Barrier islands are narrow strips of land between the sea and the mainland, shaped and reshaped by tides and wind. They shield coastlines from storm surges, support unique biological communities and play an important role in nutrient cycling. A new study focuses on one such barrier island system in Kerala to examine dung beetles, insects that play a critical role in keeping ecosystems functioning. Dung beetles break down and bury dung, contribute to soil nutrient cycling, improve soil aeration and hydrology, aid seed dispersal, and reduce parasite and disease loads. This study, at the Vypin-Kadamakkudy Barrier Island System (VKBIS), breaks new ground as it systematically studies dung beetles in a tropical barrier island. It is also the first such initial documentation of dung beetles in Kerala and the first study of the dung beetle subfamily Scarabaeinae in this barrier island system. “While designing the study, we expected clear differences in species composition, including the possibility of new records, given the island setting. We also anticipated lower species richness and abundance because the area is densely populated and rapidly urbanising,&#8221; says Chitra Rajagopal from the Department of Zoology, Nirmala College (Autonomous), Kerala, and the study’s corresponding author. &#8220;However, the VKBIS emerged as a surprisingly strong habitat for dung beetles, with species richness comparable to, or even higher than, many other natural ecosystems.” An urbanising island system The Vypin-Kadamakkudy Barrier Island System lies along the western coast of Kochi in Kerala. For the study, researchers sampled two subsystems: Vypin Island, the barrier&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/05/dung-beetles-find-an-unlikely-refuge-on-an-urbanising-barrier-island-system/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
														</item>
						<item>
					<title>Invasive species and waste are redrawing an estuary’s food web</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/04/invasive-species-and-waste-are-redrawing-an-estuarys-food-web/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/04/invasive-species-and-waste-are-redrawing-an-estuarys-food-web/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>14 Apr 2026 15:20:20 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Max Martin]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Kundan Pandey]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ecosystem]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[estuary]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Fish]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Fisheries Biology]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[invasive species]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Marine ecosystem]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Marine Fisheries]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/04/14093447/Tvm-veli-akkulam-backwaters3-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=37677</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Conserving Agro-biodiversity]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Kerala]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Ecology and Fish]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Exotic fish, invasive plants, and urban waste are quietly reshaping a scenic estuary in Thiruvananthapuram. Beneath the calm surface of the Veli-Akkulam estuary, ecosystem modelling over three decades reveals its food web is fraying, key links are broken, and top predators like local fish and birds are being edged out, even as tourists and migratory [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Exotic fish, invasive plants, and urban waste are quietly reshaping a scenic estuary in Thiruvananthapuram. Beneath the calm surface of the Veli-Akkulam estuary, ecosystem modelling over three decades reveals its food web is fraying, key links are broken, and top predators like local fish and birds are being edged out, even as tourists and migratory birds still flock to its waters. Flanking some of India’s premier scientific institutions, including the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, the estuary spans just 0.85 sq. km., about the size of a golf course. Its shallow waters—on average 1.3 metres deep—are a temporarily closed system within the fabled Kerala backwaters, oriented perpendicular to the Arabian Sea. During the monsoon, a narrow sandbar at its mouth is breached briefly, allowing two-way flow with coastal waters –letting in fish and other marine creatures to spawn here. The lake is not collapsing. It is reorganising into a simpler system dominated by invasive species with ecological links under stress. That signals a slow but steady erosion of ecosystem health. An ecosystem is a community of organisms, across different levels of the food chain (called trophic levels), including producers (organisms like plants that make their own food), consumers (organisms that eat other organisms), and decomposers (organisms that break down dead material), all interacting with each other and their environment. These interactions sustain vital functions like nutrient cycling, fisheries, and water purification, which support biodiversity and human well-being. “Over three decades, we have observed measurable restructuring of energy pathways and trophic interactions,”&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/04/invasive-species-and-waste-are-redrawing-an-estuarys-food-web/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<title>Adivasi medicinal plant collection faces uncertain economics [Commentary]</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/04/adivasi-medicinal-plant-collection-faces-uncertain-economics-commentary/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/04/adivasi-medicinal-plant-collection-faces-uncertain-economics-commentary/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>02 Apr 2026 10:37:26 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Abhi AugustineSujith M.M.Thippi ThazhasseryVipindas P.]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Arathimenon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[adivasis]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[indigenous knowledge]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[invasive plants]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[invasive species]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[livelihood]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[livelihoods]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[medicinal plants]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[medicine]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[native plants]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Traditional Knowledge]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/04/03121726/IMG_0141-scaled-1-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=37556</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Indigenous Knowledge]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Kerala]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Climate Change, Food, Forests, Indigenous Peoples, Indigenous Rights, and Plants]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Adivasi communities in India depend extensively on wild flora and fauna, particularly for food and medicine. In recent decades, the collection and sale of medicinal plants have emerged as an important lean-season livelihood activity for several Adivasi communities in the Western Ghats. What was once primarily a system of home remedies has gradually shifted towards [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Adivasi communities in India depend extensively on wild flora and fauna, particularly for food and medicine. In recent decades, the collection and sale of medicinal plants have emerged as an important lean-season livelihood activity for several Adivasi communities in the Western Ghats. What was once primarily a system of home remedies has gradually shifted towards market-oriented collection, a transition especially evident among relatively marginalised groups in Wayanad, including the Paniyan, Adiyan, Urali Kuruma, and Kattunayakan communities. Kurunthotti (Sida cordifolia), an annual herb, is among the most prominent medicinal plants collected. It is widely used and in high demand within the Ayurvedic pharmaceutical industry, particularly in Kerala. However, more than 90% of medicinal plant species across the country are reported to be at risk due to excessive and unsustainable harvesting, overexploitation, and unskilled collection practices (Gowthami et al., 2021). In Wayanad, Kurunthotti grows along roadsides, vacant lands, forests, and forest edges, and its collection provides a crucial source of income during the lean agricultural season. The collection period from September to November (the Malayalam months of Kanni and Thulam) follows the completion of major harvests, particularly paddy, around Onam, Kerala’s principal harvest festival. With agricultural wage opportunities declining during this period, communities turn to supplementary activities such as food gathering and medicinal plant collection. Harvested Kurunthotti arranged in stacks in Cheeyampam, Wayanad. Kurunthotti (Sida cordifolia) is a medicinal herb that is in high demand within the Ayurvedic pharmaceutical industry. Its collection provides income for Adivasi communities during the lean agricultural season.&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/04/adivasi-medicinal-plant-collection-faces-uncertain-economics-commentary/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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						<item>
					<title>Community-led water conservation revives groundwater</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/02/community-led-water-conservation-revives-groundwater/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/02/community-led-water-conservation-revives-groundwater/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>27 Feb 2026 13:31:50 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Anjana V.]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Priyanka Shankar]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[community]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[community conservation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[groundwater recharge]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[rainfall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[water conservation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[water crisis]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/02/27105532/3.1.testing-for-microplastic-elements-in-the-well-water-at-Vidhya_s-residence-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=37070</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Climate Connections]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Kerala]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Community based conservation, Ecology, Environment, Groundwater, Rivers, Sustainability, Villages, Water, and Wetlands]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[On a January morning in Thuruthikkara, a village in Kerala’s Ernakulam district, 53-year-old Vidhya Manjush stands beside her open well, checking the water level. Unlike in previous years, the water level remains steady. A community-driven push for rainwater harvesting and water testing ensures that the water from Manjush’s roof is filtered and directed into the well, [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[On a January morning in Thuruthikkara, a village in Kerala’s Ernakulam district, 53-year-old Vidhya Manjush stands beside her open well, checking the water level. Unlike in previous years, the water level remains steady. A community-driven push for rainwater harvesting and water testing ensures that the water from Manjush’s roof is filtered and directed into the well, helping recharge groundwater throughout the year. A few years ago, this wasn&#8217;t the case. As soon as the rains would end, groundwater recharge would slow down and the wells in the village would start drying up. The people would have to wait two to three days for a tanker to bring drinking water, Manjush recalls. And even then, it wouldn&#8217;t be potable. &#8220;The water often had black particles. I filtered it through a cloth and boiled it every time,&#8221; she says. The Ernakulam district typically receives very high rainfall, about 3000 mm annually, primarily between March and October. However, in Thuruthikkara, soon after the rains, the wells begin drying up and run dry by January, forcing households to depend on water tankers. To overcome this seasonal dependence on tankers, the village residents set up systems for rainwater harvesting, rainfall tracking and water quality testing, to make better use of the rainfall and reduce their water woes. In 2018, volunteers trained at Cochin University of Science and Technology (CUSAT) conduct chemical testing on well water in Thuruthikkara. Image by Suresh Thuruthikkara. When the residents came together Thuruthikkara falls under the Mulanthuruthy grama panchayat and is bordered&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/02/community-led-water-conservation-revives-groundwater/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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						<item>
					<title>Pre-monsoon storms intensify with thunder and flash floods</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/02/pre-monsoon-storms-intensify-with-thunder-and-flash-floods/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/02/pre-monsoon-storms-intensify-with-thunder-and-flash-floods/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>24 Feb 2026 13:27:19 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Max Martin]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Kundan Pandey]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[extreme rainfall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[heavy rainfall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[non-monsoon rains]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[thunderstorm]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/02/24105637/AP22192397871178-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=37016</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Climate Connections]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Kerala]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Cities and Towns, Climate Change, Extreme Weather Events, Floods, Impacts of Climate Change, and Monsoons]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[On a late evening in the first week of February, after what passed for a usual balmy afternoon, the night sky clouded over the fringes of the Kochi metropolitan area. Thunder cracked, lightning followed, and within minutes a burst of rain flooded roads, slowing traffic to a crawl in several stretches. Those caught without umbrellas [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[On a late evening in the first week of February, after what passed for a usual balmy afternoon, the night sky clouded over the fringes of the Kochi metropolitan area. Thunder cracked, lightning followed, and within minutes a burst of rain flooded roads, slowing traffic to a crawl in several stretches. Those caught without umbrellas could not walk a few yards to the nearest bus stop, while autorickshaws refused to ply because water was rapidly pooling on the streets. The downpour did not last long, but it was intense enough to overwhelm drains and leave behind pools of water. This rain was isolated and quite early, before the summer season of March to May. However, fast-forming thunderstorms are becoming an increasingly familiar risk in Kerala, especially during the pre- and post-monsoon months, explained Abhilash S, head of the department of atmospheric sciences at the Cochin University of Science and Technology (CUSAT). A recent study by his team mapping lightning strikes, wind gusts, and short-duration rainfall across Kerala state shows they cluster in distinct hotspots — causing flash floods in cities and landslides in the hills. Rapidly building thunderstorms Convective storms — the fast-building thunderstorms that often arrive with little warning — are a familiar feature of Kerala’s pre-monsoon weather. These are associated with thunder, lightning, heavy rain, hail, strong winds, and sudden temperature changes. They can occur year-round, but are most common in the summer. However, these storms are posing a triple threat — bringing intense rainfall, dangerous lightning, and&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/02/pre-monsoon-storms-intensify-with-thunder-and-flash-floods/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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						<item>
					<title>Prioritise turtle conservation over tourism say experts after budget announcement</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/02/prioritise-turtle-conservation-over-tourism-say-experts-after-budget-announcement/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/02/prioritise-turtle-conservation-over-tourism-say-experts-after-budget-announcement/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>18 Feb 2026 14:30:51 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[K.A. Shaji]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Aditi Tandon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[olive ridleys]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[turtle]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[turtles]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/02/18120501/5-e1771401420372-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://india.mongabay.com/?p=36951</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Almost Famous Species]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Kerala]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Coast, Conservation, Ecology, Environmental Politics, Habitat Loss, Oceans, Reptiles, Tourism, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[On a humid morning at Kolavipalam beach in Kozhikode, at one of Kerala’s earliest community-led turtle conservation sites, volunteer Abdul Rahman walks slowly along the fenced hatchery enclosure, scanning the sand for any sign of disturbance. Two decades ago, he recalls, this stretch of the coast regularly recorded dozens of olive ridley nests each season, [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[On a humid morning at Kolavipalam beach in Kozhikode, at one of Kerala’s earliest community-led turtle conservation sites, volunteer Abdul Rahman walks slowly along the fenced hatchery enclosure, scanning the sand for any sign of disturbance. Two decades ago, he recalls, this stretch of the coast regularly recorded dozens of olive ridley nests each season, attracting conservationists, students, and eco-tourists eager to witness hatchlings returning to the sea. Today, months can pass without a single nesting sighting. Just two days before this, the Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced, in her budget speech, a proposed “turtle trail” tourism initiative along the coasts of Kerala, Karnataka, and Odisha. “The minister talks about turtle tourism,” says Rahman, looking toward the rock-armoured shoreline. “But first, we need turtles. Almost every night, we patrol the beach and find nothing.” Kolavipalam once symbolised the success of community-driven marine conservation in Kerala, where local fishers maintained day-and-night vigilance against sand mining that could destroy hatcheries. Fishers here have long used turtle-excluding devices in fishing nets, and hatchery maintenance continues, but nesting numbers have declined sharply. Why sea turtles matter Sea turtles play a crucial ecological role in maintaining the health of marine and coastal ecosystems. By grazing on seagrass beds and controlling jellyfish populations, they help sustain marine biodiversity and support fish populations that coastal communities depend on for livelihoods. Nesting activity also contributes to nutrient cycling on beaches, enriching coastal vegetation and stabilising dune ecosystems that protect shorelines from erosion. Globally, all species of sea&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/02/prioritise-turtle-conservation-over-tourism-say-experts-after-budget-announcement/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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						<item>
					<title>Urban climate risks push migrant workers to sweat without safety</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/02/urban-climate-risks-push-migrant-workers-to-sweat-without-safety/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/02/urban-climate-risks-push-migrant-workers-to-sweat-without-safety/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>10 Feb 2026 13:12:13 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Mahima Jain]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Arathimenon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[climate-induced migration]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[development]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[disease]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Gig workers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[human health]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[India climate policy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[migration]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[policy]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/02/09213750/PXL_20260119_111354854-scaled-e1770653511518-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
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											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Hewing The Regulatory Tree and Just Transitions]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[India, Karnataka, and Kerala]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Cities and Towns, Climate Change, Environment, Environmental Law, Health impacts, Human Rights, and Impacts of Climate Change]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Sisters Rekha, 40, and Ratnamma T., 50, left their village in Raichur, Karnataka, over a decade ago with their three children each. They had no work back at home. They were confident they would find something to do in Bengaluru, which registered a population growth of 40% between 2001 and 2011 to 8.5 million people. [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Sisters Rekha, 40, and Ratnamma T., 50, left their village in Raichur, Karnataka, over a decade ago with their three children each. They had no work back at home. They were confident they would find something to do in Bengaluru, which registered a population growth of 40% between 2001 and 2011 to 8.5 million people. Today, an estimated 14.8 million people live in the city. They became domestic workers and found a house in Maruti Layout on the banks of Anchepalya Lake in Jakkur, north Bengaluru. The dwelling, roughly 8&#215;8 feet, has three brick walls and a roof made of materials including tarpaulin, metal boards, and corrugated cement sheets. Similar houses surround their densely packed neighbourhood. Neither sister is fond of the nip in the air or the monsoons. The winters are too cold, and the summers too hot. When heavy rains arrive, the water from Anchepalya Lake pours over into the dusty pathways of the low-lying Maruti Layout. Freshwater, sewage and sludge mix. Mosquitoes breed. Infections and diseases follow. Karnataka State Action Plan on Climate Change states that climate change means Bengaluru will have hotter summers, heavier rainfall, and more frequent drought. Ratnamma is already feeling these effects. “In the summer, we can’t sleep. We sit out until midnight, hoping that a little breeze will cool us down. And during the rain, we can’t sleep because there’s water and mosquitoes everywhere,” she says. “We are all migrants,” says Siji Chacko, Climate Innovations, Migrants Resilience Collaborative (MRC). “But what separates us&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/02/urban-climate-risks-push-migrant-workers-to-sweat-without-safety/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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						<item>
					<title>Community rain monitoring helps disaster preparedness</title>
					<link>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/01/community-rain-monitoring-helps-disaster-preparedness/</link>
					<comments>https://india.mongabay.com/2026/01/community-rain-monitoring-helps-disaster-preparedness/?noamp=mobile#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>20 Jan 2026 18:02:49 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Arathi M.R.]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Arathimenon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Disaster management]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[disasters]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[extreme rainfall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[heavy rainfall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[local community]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Monitoring]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[rainfall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[weather]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Weather patterns]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/01/20111209/Baiju-Mash-reading-the-rainfall-from-the-rain-gauge-installed-in-his-home-scaled-e1768888678591-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
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											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Climate Connections]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Kerala]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Cities and Towns, Environment, Extreme Weather Events, Floods, and Rivers]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[For most of her life, the annual monsoon inspired poetry in Elizabeth Koshy, a teacher, translator, and poet from Kumaranalloor in Kottayam district of Kerala. But that changed forever after the 2018 flood. She recalls: “Every year, water would rise to the road and subside once the rain stopped. That year, it didn’t. I sat [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[For most of her life, the annual monsoon inspired poetry in Elizabeth Koshy, a teacher, translator, and poet from Kumaranalloor in Kottayam district of Kerala. But that changed forever after the 2018 flood. She recalls: “Every year, water would rise to the road and subside once the rain stopped. That year, it didn’t. I sat on the verandah watching the rain, and by evening, the water had reached my feet.” In August 2018, the southern Indian state of Kerala experienced one of its worst natural disasters. Exceptionally heavy monsoon rainfall caused rivers to overflow and reservoirs to fill beyond capacity, forcing the government to suddenly release water from several dams. Nearly 500 people died in the floods which caused widespread damage to homes, roads, agriculture, and livelihoods, displacing hundreds of thousands of people. The scale of the disaster exposed serious gaps in disaster preparedness, early warning systems, and institutional response, even as citizens, volunteers, and civil society groups across India came together to support rescue and relief efforts. A wheelchair user due to polio in infancy, Elizabeth was with her house help Meenakshi when the water entered her home. Neighbours soon arrived with a boat and took them to safety. After that ordeal, she built a room upstairs with a ramp and later, joined the Meenachil Rain Monitoring Group, a citizen initiative that tracks rainfall in real time. “Their rain updates give me both warning and comfort,” she says. The state received 2,346.6 mm of rainfall between June 1 and&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://india.mongabay.com/2026/01/community-rain-monitoring-helps-disaster-preparedness/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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