Kerala Tops National Park Management Evaluation, Sets National Benchmark for Biodiversity Conservation

Conducted by the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, the evaluation assessed 438 protected areas across the country. Kerala emerged as the only state to receive a “Very Good” rating, with a top score of 76.22%—a significant recognition of its consistent and effective management of protected ecosystems.

Among individual parks, Eravikulam National Park in Kerala and Dachigam National Park in Jammu & Kashmir shared the highest national score of 92.97%. Located in the biodiverse Western Ghats, Eravikulam is renowned for its shola-grassland ecosystem, the endangered Nilgiri Tahr, and the rare Neelakurinji flower, which blooms once every 12 years.

The evaluation framework used 32 performance indicators across six categories, aligned with global standards such as those of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and the World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA).

Kerala’s effective stewardship of its 21 protected areas played a key role in securing its top rank, outperforming other high-scoring states such as Karnataka (74.24%), Punjab (71.74%), and Himachal Pradesh (71.36%), all of which received a “Good” rating.

The MEE serves as a vital tool for improving the management of protected areas, offering insights for policy-makers and forest departments across India to enhance conservation outcomes.