- India ranks 176th out of 180 countries in the first-ever Global Nature Conservation Index (NCI) 2024, abysmal scoring 45.5/100, placing it among the five worst performers.
- The NCI is developed by Goldman Sonnenfeldt School of Sustainability and Climate Change at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev and BioDB.com, a non-profit website dedicated to maintaining biodiversity data.
- Inefficient land management and rapid land conversion (53%) for urban, industrial, and agricultural purposes have led to biodiversity challenges.
- Soil pollution is highlighted, with India scoring 0.77 on the sustainable nitrogen index due to high pesticide use.
- Between 2001-2019, 23,300 sq. km of tree cover was lost due to deforestation mostly for Agriculture and Urbanisation.
- India is the fourth-largest illegal wildlife trader, valued at £15 billion annually.
| Marine and Terrestrial Conservation: India has protected only 0.2% of its waterways, with no areas under protection within its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). Terrestrial protection stands at 7.5%. Despite 40% of marine and 65% of terrestrial species residing in Protected Areas, population declines persist, with 67.5% of marine and 46.9% of terrestrial species still decreasing. India struggles with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 14 (Life Below Water) and 15 (Life on Land), signalling major biodiversity concerns. |
Dig Deeper: Read about species richness and species evenness.
