On October 24, 2024, India was ranked as 176 out of 180 countries on the Nature Conservation Index (NCI), an assessment tool that evaluates conservation efforts using four parameters—land management, threats to biodiversity, capacity and governance, and future trends. The country received a score of 45.5 out of 100, mainly due to inefficient land management and rising threats to its biodiversity. With about seven to eight per cent of the world’s documented species spread over only 2.4 per cent of total land area, the NCI highlighted multiple threats to India’s biodiversity, including habitat loss and fragmentation caused by agriculture, urbanisation and infrastructural development, with climate change posing an additional risk.

　　Outlook Traveller spoke with Nirmal U Kulkarni, a herpetologist and conservationist with roles at the Goa State Biodiversity Board, the Mhadei Research Center and the IUCN Viper Specialist Group about India’s ranking and what needs to be done to preserve its biodiversity.

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