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The Nanda Devi Biosphere Decadal Monitoring Campaign 2026, by the Uttarakhand Forest Department and the Wildlife Institute of India (WII), found that landslide-prone zones in the strictly protected core have nearly doubled over the past decade — along with the appearance of a new glacial lake.
Context of the News
What Is the Reserve?
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- A high-altitude protected Himalayan landscape under UNESCO’s Man and the Biosphere (MAB) Programme
- It has two core zones:
- Nanda Devi National Park
- Valley of Flowers National Park
- Both are inscribed together as a UNESCO World Heritage Site
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Where Is It?
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- In the Garhwal and Kumaon Himalayas
- Across three districts of Uttarakhand — Chamoli, Pithoragarh and Bageshwar
- Area: 6,407 sq km
- In the upper catchment of the Alaknanda river system
Key Terms
- Biosphere Reserve: A protected area with three zones — a core (strictly protected), a buffer (limited activity) and a transition zone (human settlement and sustainable use)
- MAB Programme: UNESCO’s Man and the Biosphere Programme, under which biosphere reserves are internationally recognised
- Ecotone: A transition zone between two ecosystems, usually rich in species from both
- Bugyal: A high-altitude alpine meadow in Uttarakhand
- Endemic species: Found naturally nowhere else
- GLOF: Glacial Lake Outburst Flood — a sudden release of water when a glacial lake’s natural dam breaks
- UNESCO World Heritage Site 1988, extended 2005; MAB listed 2004
- India has 18 biosphere reserves, of which 12 are in the UNESCO network; Nilgiri (1986) was the first
