Jaipur (Rajasthan) [India], September 21 (ANI): Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Bhupender Yadav, on Monday inaugurated the Global Conservation Conference of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) in Jaipur, urging global stakeholders to foster conservation through coexistence and active local community participation.
Addressing delegates and conservation leaders from more than 100 countries, the Union Minister highlighted India's major strides in wildlife preservation under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, noting that sustained political will and scientific monitoring have yielded significant ecological results.
"India's commitment to species conservation is both constitutional and cultural, rooted in a worldview that long predates modern protected-area law. India has built a substantial framework in its Constitution that makes protecting wildlife both a State directive and a citizen's duty, yet this formal architecture rests on a deeper ethos," Yadav said.
Highlighting the expansion of protected networks over the last decade, the Minister pointed out that the number of protected areas in the country has risen from around 750 to more than 1,000. During the same period:
Tiger reserves increased from 47 to 58. Elephant reserves expanded from 30 to 33. Ramsar sites (wetlands of international importance) grew significantly from 24 to 101.
Yadav also underscored the milestone success of the Cheetah reintroduction project in India, as well as the nation's adherence to international frameworks including CITES, CMS, CBD, and the Ramsar Convention, which have helped secure populations of tigers, elephants, one-horned rhinos, and Asiatic lions.
The Minister emphasised the critical role of scientific research, pointing to pan-India population estimates of species such as tigers, elephants, dolphins, lions, and snow leopards. These assessments, he noted, have provided actionable insights for landscape-level conservation, securing biological corridors, and habitat restoration.
Drawing attention to regional conservation models, Yadav highlighted Rajasthan’s success in the conservation breeding of the critically endangered Great Indian Bustard (GIB), as well as the community-led protection of Orans (traditional sacred groves), which play a vital role in achieving land degradation neutrality.
Calling for balanced ecological stewardship, Yadav stressed the importance of conserving grasslands alongside woodlands and wetlands, referencing India’s dedicated initiatives for grassland-dependent megaherbivores, including the one-horned rhinoceros and the wild water buffalo.
Concluding his address, the Union Minister issued a call to the global conservation community to look beyond reflection and convert successful working models into concrete global action.
The inaugural event was attended by senior officials and international delegates, including Additional Director General (Wildlife), MoEFCC, Ramesh Pandey; Head of Forest Force and Principal Chief Conservator of Forest (Rajasthan), Arijit Banerjee; Chief Conservation Officer at WWF-International, Daudi Samba; and CEO of WWF-India, Ravi Singh. (ANI)
Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav inaugurates WWF Global Conservation Conference in Jaipur
