Gulf of mannar biosphere reserve

Express News Service RAMANATHAPURAM: In a first for an Indian, Ramanathapuram wildlife warden and director of Gulf of Mannar Biosphere Reserve, Bakan Jagdish Sudhakar, has been selected for UNESCO’s Michel Batisse Award for effective biosphere reserve management. The Indian Forest Service officer will receive the award and deliver a lecture on his case studies at a function to be held in Paris on June 14. The $12,000 award is given once every two years in memory of Dr Michel Batisse for outstanding achievement in management of biosphere reserves across the globe. The award was instituted in 2004 following a decision of the International Coordinating Council of the Man and the Biosphere (MAB) Programme of UNESCO. According to an official statement from UNESCO, MAB had received nominations from 16 eligible candidates this year. In March 2023, the advisory committee members recommended Bakan Jagdish’s name for the 2023 award for his case study titled “Development of Sustainable Livelihood and Community Based Biodiversity Conservation and Environment Protection”. In 2021, Sharon Wright of Australia has won the award for her work in Noosa Biosphere Reserve. Speaking to TNIE, Bakan Jagdish Sudhakar said, “We are doing various works at Gulf of Mannar Biosphere. We have submitted details about six projects, including creation of plastic-free zones at Dhanushkodi and Ervadi areas through check posts and collection, mangrove forest management on coastline, integrated growth of commu...

Gulf of Mannar Marine National Park (India) Show map of India Location Coastal regions of Nearestcity Rameswaram Coordinates 09°08′15″N 79°28′21″E / 9.13750°N 79.47250°E / 9.13750; 79.47250 Area 560km 2 (220sqmi) Established 1986 Governingbody .tn .nic .in /WildBiodiversity /np _gmmnp .html The Gulf of Mannar Marine National Park is a Geography [ ] The 560km 2 (220sqmi) park is part of the 140km long and 25km wide Mannar 2 (2.41sqmi). The islands (listed southwest to northeast) Vaan, 16.0 ha 8°50′11″N 78°12′38″E / 8.83639°N 78.21047°E / 8.83639; 78.21047 Koswari, 19.50 ha 8°52′08″N 78°13′30″E / 8.86879°N 78.22506°E / 8.86879; 78.22506 Vilanguchalli, 0.95 ha 8°56′17″N 78°16′11″E / 8.93815°N 78.26969°E / 8.93815; 78.26969, now 1 m below mean low tide level as a result of excessive coral mining. Kariyachalli, 16.46 ha 8°57′15″N 78°15′08″E / 8.95409°N 78.25235°E / 8.95409; 78.25235 Uppu Thanni, 22.94 ha, elevation 4 m 9°05′21″N 78°29′29″E / 9.08921°N 78.49148°E / 9.08921; 78.49148 Puluvini Challi, 6.12 ha, elevation 5.5 m 9°06′12″N 78°32′13″E / 9.10320°N 78.53688°E / 9.10320; 78.53688 Nalla Thanni, 101.00 ha, elevation 11.9 m (recently populated) 9°06′24″N 78°34′44″E / 9.10667°N 78.57885°E / 9.10667; 78.57885 Anaipar, 11.00 ha, elevation 2.1 m 9°09′11″N 78°41′41″E / 9.15294°N 78.69481°E / 9.15294; 78.69481 Vali Munai, 6.72 ha, elevation 1.2 m 9°09′13″N 78°43′50″E / 9.15354°N 78.73052°E / 9.15354; 78.73052 Poovarasan Patti, 0.50 ha, elevation 1.2 m 9°09′15″N 78°46′01″E / 9.1541...

Site description (baseline) The Gulf of Mannar, the first marine Biosphere Reserve of India, off the southern extremity of India, includes a group of 21 islands, located 0.2 to 8 km off the coast. Most of the islands are small, from a few hectares to less than 4 sq. km., running roughly parallel to the coast. The islands are mainly of coral origin. The Gulf of Mannar is the first Marine Biosphere Reserve not only in India, but also in south and southeast Asia. It is about 60 km from Ramanathapuram. The Gulf of Mannar has a coastal length of about 141 km. The International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) commission on National Parks, and the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), identified the Reserve as being an area of “Particular concern” given its biodiversity and special ‘multiple use’ management status. Mandapam lies on a narrow peninsula projecting from the southeast coast of India, with the Gulf of Mannar to the south and Palk Bay to the north. At the end of the peninsular extension is Pamban Island, which is connected to the mainland by a railway bridge. The inshore region of the Palk Bay is largely muddy, while in the Gulf of Mannar, it is rocky and interspersed with small areas of sand and mud (Balachandran 1995). The mixing of waters of Palk Bay and the Gulf takes place through the Pamban Pass and also through Adam’s Bridge between Dhanushkodi and the west coast of Sri Lanka (Jayaraman 1954). The Gulf of Mannar Marine NP consists of 6.23 sq. k...

Context – The Gulf of Mannar marine national park’s DFO recently bagged the UNESCO’s Michel Batisse Award for the year 2023. Key highlights: • The award includes US $12000 that shall be given during the 35th Man and biodiversity (MAB) council to be held in UNESCO,Paris from June 12 to 15. • The award is instituted in the name of Dr.Michel Batisse for his achievements in management of biodiversity reserves in line with the recommendation of the Seville strategy. • The award shall be presented to Jagdish Bakan, wildlife warden and district forest officer (DFO) of Ramanthapuram district,Tamil Nadu. About Gulf of mannar: • The Gulf of mannar is a biosphere reserve and is one of the richest biologically coastal regions in all of mainland India. • It is the first Marine biosphere reserve of south and southeast Asia located 160 km between Thoothukudi and Dhanuskodi in Tamil Nadu. • The biosphere was established in 1980 and is rich in surreal aquatic ecosystems,seagrass,coral reefs,mangroves ,fishes, birds, turtles,crustaceans and encompases an chain of 21 islands . • The Dugong ( Dugong dugon ) , an endangered marine animal close to Stellar sea cow is found in this marine national park -a key attraction apart from that 117 varieties of hard coral species and vulnerable humpback whale, fin whales and blue whale are found here. • August 8, 2020 Members of committee to recommend parameters for loan restructuring named • November 28, 2019 SPG Bill Passed in Lok Sabha amidst Walkouts ...

Through his work, Jagdish S Bakan , director of the Gulf of Mannar Marine National Park ( GoMMNP ), has helped generate about 8,000 green jobs benefiting more than 7,000 women. More than 70 hectares of mangroves have been planted and 600sqm of coral reefs transplanted and 185 hectares of invasive plants removed on land, says the chemical engineerturned-conservationist. Fresh off being announced as a recipient of ’s Dr Mitchel Batisse Award for Biosphere Reserve Management for 2023, Bakan, in an interview with Arockiaraj J, talks about how he restored the marine ecosystem. Chief minister M K Stalin took to Twitter recently to congratulate you on your award. Tell us more about your work that won you the Unesco recognition. It was a case study that we submitted on ‘Development and sustainable livelihood and community-based biodiversity conservation and environment protection’ that got us the award. It focused on the conservation of biodiversity in the Gulf of Mannar and addressed the primary threats to the coastal biodiversity such as habitat destruction, over-harvesting and marine pollution. The case study also focuses on restoring the marine ecosystem, protecting marine mammals and removing invasive species from coral and mangrove ecosystems. We also studied the importance of community involvement such as sensitising people on the significance of the biodiversity of the reserve, involving them for plastic control and generating alternative livelihood. What were some of the ...

Blooming of microalgae kills coral reefs in Gulf of Mannar Prosopis chilensis, a drought-resistant plant native to the arid regions of four South American countries — Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, and Peru — is not the only trouble for these islands divided into the Tuticorin, Vembar, Kilakkarai, and Mandapam groups. The coral reef has been destroyed in several places near these islands although coral quarrying for industrial purposes has been outlawed, the study published in the Journal of Threatened Taxa said. Human settlements, though not permanent, have also impacted the islands such as Poomarichan, Pullivasa, and Manoliputti in the Mandapam group, the study said, while recording 96 species of birds on these islands. The coral reef across these islands has been destroyed in several places near these islands although coral quarrying for industrial purposes has been outlawed. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement The authors of the study are H. Byju and S. Ravichandran of Annamalai University’s Centre of Advanced Study in Marine Biology, and N. Raveendran of the Madurai-based Iragukal Amritha Nature Trust. “Most of the islands have sand dunes along their coastlines with salt-dominant plant species. Some of the islands contain trees while the marshy sections of some of the islands are occupied by mangroves and allied species,” Dr. Byju told The Hindu. “We found the Prosopis chilensis in seven or eight islands. Any invasive species on an island will slowly kill the native trees...

Gulf of Mannar Information in Detail Gulf of Mannar: Gulf of Mannar Biosphere Reserve Gulf of Mannar Biosphere Reserve: Gulf of Mannar biosphere reserve, extends from Rameswaram Island to Tuticorin in a NE-SW direction and lies between 78° 5' E - 79° 30' E longitudes and 8° 45' N - 9° 25' N latitudes, and extends to a distance of 140 km. There are 21 islands running almost parallel to the coastline of Gulf of Mannar. These islands lie between 8° 47' N - 9° 15' N latitudes and 78° 12' E - 79° 14' E longitudes. The detailed account of each island is provided in Table 2. The islands are situated at an average distance of about 8 km from the coastline of Gulf of Mannar. It is bound by Palk Bay and Rameswaram Island in the north side; by Ramanathapuram district in the northwest and west; and by Tuticorin district in the south and by Bay of Bengal in the east. It is endowed with three distinct Marine ecosystems namely corals, seagrass and mangroves. Gulf of Mannar experiences a tropical climate. The area comes under the spell of both southwest and northeast monsoons. The southwest monsoon contributes only very little towards the annual rainfall. Rainfall is moderate to heavy during October to mid-December under the spell of northeast monsoon, with occasional gales. The mean annual rainfall varies from 762 mm to 1270 mm (Neelakantan 1998). The period from January to May is marked by unusually hot climate. The coldest month is December with temperature dropping to a minimum of 25 ...

The 2 (1,276sqmi), constituting 2.54% of the geographic area and 15% of the 22,643km 2 (8,743sqmi) recorded forest area. It ranks 14th among all the States and Union Territories of India in terms of total protected area. Creation and administration of Protected areas in South India originated with the Maharajas of the Southern Princely States' Protected areas of Tamil Nadu Map Key: Biosphere Reserve National Park Wildlife Sanctuary Bird Sanctuary Zoo Biosphere reserves [ ] The three Biosphere Reserves in Tamil Nadu are: • 2 (4,100sqmi); established in 1989. • 2 (2,130sqmi), of which 2537.6km² is in Tamil Nadu. Established in 1986. • 2 (1,351.50sqmi); established in 2001. National parks [ ] Tamil Nadu has the following • 2 (187sqmi); giant squirrel sanctuary near • • 2 (86.32sqmi) • 2 (176.75sqmi) • 2 (84.08sqmi); overlaps with Mudumalai National Park • 2 (545.0sqmi) • 2 (6.34sqmi) • • • • Kodaikanal Wildlife Sanctuary • Gangaikondan Spotted Deer Sanctuary • Cauvery North Wildlife sanctuary • • Kaduvur Slender Loris Sanctuary • Cauvery South Wildlife Sanctuary Elephant reserves [ ] Tamil Nadu participates in • Nilgiri Elephant Reserve: 4,663km 2 (1,800sqmi), protected area 716km 2 (276sqmi); established 2003. • Coimbatore Elephant Reserve: 566km 2 (219sqmi), protected area 482km 2 (186sqmi); established 2003. • Anamalai Elephant Reserve 1,457km 2 (563sqmi), protected area 300km 2 (120sqmi); established 2003. • Srivilliputtur Elephant Reserve, 1,249km 2 (482sqmi), protected ...

• • Introducing UNESCO • • • • • • • Transparency • • • • • Expertise • • • • • • Major Initiatives • • • • • • • • • Specialized Areas • • • Global Priorities • • • • • • • • Networks • • • • • • Institutes • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • UNESCO Lists • • • • • • • • Data and Statistics • • • • • Archives • • • Library • • • There are 172 biosphere reserves in 24 countries in Asia and the Pacific. The Asia and the Pacific region counts four • The East Asian Biosphere Reserve Network (EABRN) launched in 1994, • The Pacific Man and the Biosphere Network (PacMAB) created in 2006, • The South and Central Asia MAB Network (SACAM) created in 2002, and • The Southeast Asian Biosphere Reserve Network (SeaBRnet) created in 1998. Full list of biosphere reserves in the region: Countries Biosphere Reserve Year of designation Periodic Reviews AUSTRALIA 5 biosphere reserves Croajingolong 1977. Withdrawn in 2020 2003 Kosciuszko 1977. Withdrawn in 2020 2003 Southwest 1977. Withdrawn in 2002 Macquarie Island 1977. Withdrawn in 2011 Prince Regent 1977. Withdrawn in 2018 Unnamed 1977. Withdrawn in 2020 2003 Uluru (Ayers Rock-Mount Olga) 1977. Withdrawn in 2020 2003 Yathong 1977. Withdrawn in 2018 Riverland 1977 (Originally Danggali Conservation Park, extended and renamed Bookmark in 1995. Renamed as Riverland in 2004). Withdrawn in 2020 2004 1978 2003, 2017 Hattah-Kulkyne & Murray-Kulkyne 1981. Withdrawn in 2018 Wilson's Promontory 1981. Withdrawn in 2018 2002 20...