Shankar IAS Test: Conservation Efforts - Free MCQ with solutions for UPSC

It is a global initiative to enhance countries' capacity to restore at least 30% of degraded ecosystems by 2030.

Accelerating Innovative Monitoring for Nature Restoration (AIM4NatuRe) is a FAO-led initiative funded by the UK with USD 9 million to strengthen national capacities to monitor and report on restoration efforts.

The initiative provides technical tools and methods-including remote sensing, earth observation data, and standardized data frameworks-alongside training and technical support so progress toward restoring at least 30% of degraded ecosystems by 2030 (per the Global Biodiversity Framework Target 2) can be tracked consistently, transparently, and comparably across countries.

Only one

Statement 1 is incorrect - the Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (GIAHS) is a programme of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), initiated in 2002, and is not an initiative of UNESCO.

Statement 2 is correct - GIAHS recognises diverse socio-ecological production systems including both land-based and aquatic-based agricultural systems (for example terraced rice systems and rice-fish/wetland-based systems).

Statement 3 is incorrect - India has several GIAHS sites, for example Pampore Saffron (2011), Koraput Traditional Agriculture (2011), and Kuttanad in Kerala (2013).

1 only

Sacred groves are small patches of vegetation protected by local or indigenous communities because of religious and cultural beliefs; these community-held sanctuaries (known locally as Devrai, Sarna, Sarpa Kavu, Koil Kadu, etc.) are conserved through traditional rules and customs enforced over generations.

The second statement is incorrect because protection is typically based on customary restrictions and taboos, not an absolute ban on all human presence or use. Many groves permit ritual visits, worship, and limited traditional uses (for example, collecting certain non-timber forest products (NTFPs), conducting ceremonies, or controlled grazing) while prohibiting destructive activities like cutting trees or hunting.

These community-based rules help maintain high local biodiversity and ecosystem functions (seed banks, microclimate, watershed protection), which is why sacred groves are important cultural-ecological conservation units rather than strictly untouched wilderness areas.

Both 1 and 2

Biodiversity Heritage Sites (BHS) are locations identified for their importance in conserving biological diversity along with associated cultural and traditional values; such sites are notified by the State Government with involvement of the State Biodiversity Board and local bodies.

One of the recognized criteria for declaring a BHS is the richness of biological resources, which explicitly includes both wild and domesticated species, as well as high endemism, rare/threatened or keystone species, and species of evolutionary significance.

Accordingly, areas that contain significant components of domesticated biodiversity - for example traditional agroecosystems, landraces, and wild ancestors/crop wild relatives - are eligible to be declared as BHS, because protecting them preserves genetic diversity and associated traditional knowledge.

Hence both statements are correct: the richness of domestic species is a criterion for BHS designation, and areas with important domesticated biodiversity components can be declared as BHS. Management and conservation measures are implemented at the state level with local participation and appropriate support mechanisms for communities.

United Nations Development Programme

The report, published by the United Nations Development Programme, assesses implementation of the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006 (commonly the Forest Rights Act) over roughly two decades.

The Forest Rights Act (2006) was enacted to redress historical injustices by recognizing and vesting both individual and community rights over forest land and resources - including habitat rights, community forest resource rights, grazing rights, and rights to minor forest produce - thereby supporting livelihood and food security for forest-dwelling communities.

Key recommendations highlighted in the report include recognizing forest-rights holders across social-protection and livelihood schemes (for example, integrating beneficiaries in Public Distribution System (PDS), MGNREGA and pension/entitlement programmes) so legal recognition translates into access to services.

Provide dedicated and predictable financing for FRA implementation, including funds for claim verification, demarcation, community-led resource management, and capacity-building at the Gram Sabha and local administration levels (dedicated implementation funds).

Link FRA implementation with national livelihood and self-help group programmes - notably Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana - National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM) and related schemes - to strengthen sustainable income options for recognised rights-holders.

Ensure effective integration with Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act (PESA) provisions and reinforce the role of the Gram Sabha as the primary decision-making body for forest-rights claims and local resource governance.

Streamline the claims process through procedural simplification, capacity-building for frontline officials and communities, digitisation of records and transparent grievance redressal mechanisms to speed up recognition and reduce disputes (claims, digitisation, grievance redressal).

Collectively, these measures aim to convert statutory recognition under the FRA into on-the-ground tenure security and improved livelihood outcomes for forest-dependent communities.

Only one

Statement 1 - True. The International Big Cat Alliance was initiated and launched by India on 9 April 2023 as part of Project Tiger's 50th-anniversary events; India is the founding/initiating country.

Statement 2 - False. The alliance covers seven big cat species: Tiger, Lion, Leopard, Snow Leopard, Cheetah, Jaguar, and Puma. Only five of these occur in India - Tiger, Asiatic Lion, Leopard, Snow Leopard, and Cheetah; the Jaguar and Puma are native to the Americas.

Statement 3 - False. The IBCA Secretariat is headquartered in New Delhi, India, not in Geneva.

Conclusion - Exactly one statement is correct.

C: Both 1 and 2. TRAFFIC was established in 1976 under the auspices of the IUCN and the WWF as a specialist network to monitor the global wildlife trade.

Its work covers both legal and illegal trade in wild animals and plants worldwide, providing data, analysis and policy support (including collaboration with CITES) to help curb illegal trafficking and promote sustainable trade.

D: None

All three given statements are incorrect. Each statement is evaluated separately below.

Statement 1 is false. Under Protected Forests, customary and other activities generally continue to be allowed unless a specific prohibition is notified; activities are not universally forbidden pending explicit permission.

Statement 2 is false. Reserved Forests receive the highest degree of protection under forest law: by default activities are prohibited in a reserved forest and can be allowed only by specific permission from the competent authority.

Statement 3 is false. The classification into Reserved Forests, Protected Forests and Unclassed Forests is a matter of forest law and notification by the state under the relevant forest statutes (for example, the Indian Forest Act, 1927 or applicable state forest acts). The Biological Diversity Act, 2002 deals with biodiversity conservation, access and benefit sharing and related institutional mechanisms, but it does not serve as the statute that notifies these forest categories.

Therefore, none of the three statements is correct.

2, 3 and 4 only

Ex-situ conservation refers to protecting components of biological diversity outside their natural habitats - for example in botanical gardens, zoos, and seed banks. These facilities maintain living specimens, seeds or cultured material for research, breeding and possible reintroduction.

In-situ conservation means conserving species in their natural ecosystems, as in biosphere reserves, sanctuaries, national parks and protected forests.

1. Biosphere reserves - conserved in natural habitats; this is in-situ, not ex-situ.

2. Botanical Garden - plants are maintained outside their natural habitat; this is ex-situ.

3. Horticultural gardens - cultivated and maintained outside wild habitats; this is ex-situ.

4. Seed banks - seeds are stored and conserved ex situ for future use; this is ex-situ.

5. Sanctuaries - animals/plants are protected within their natural surroundings; this is in-situ, not ex-situ.

Therefore, the correct group comprises the items listed in the first line above.

United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification - the report was produced by UNCCD in collaboration with the policy consultancy adelphi and other partner organizations.

The analysis links land degradation to cascading risks such as economic loss, food insecurity, migration, inequality and weakened governance, showing how these pressures can raise the likelihood of local and cross-border tensions.

It concludes that investing in ecosystem restoration and fostering cooperation over shared natural resources (including transboundary approaches) can reduce conflict risk, enable broader political agreements and support long-term peacebuilding.

D: 1, 2 and 3

Statement 1 - Correct. The International Big Cat Alliance (IBCA) was announced by India in 2023 (at the event marking 50 years of Project Tiger) as a global initiative led by India to promote conservation of big-cat species through international cooperation.

Statement 2 - Correct. The alliance targets conservation of the world's principal big-cat species, focusing on the seven generally referenced big cats (under the broad grouping Pantherinae): lion, tiger, jaguar, leopard, snow leopard, clouded leopard, and Sunda clouded leopard, and supports range-wide and transboundary measures, knowledge-sharing and best-practice consolidation.

Statement 3 - Correct. The IBCA's secretariat/headquarters has been set up in New Delhi; its governance framework includes an assembly, a standing committee and a secretariat, and its membership comprises both range and non-range countries cooperating on big-cat conservation.

All three statements are therefore correct.

All five. The Green Credit framework notified by the Government of India recognises and rewards a broad set of environmental actions, so each of the listed activities is eligible for Green Credits.

Specifically, the Rules and associated methodologies cover Tree Plantation, Water Management, Sustainable Agriculture, Waste Management, Air Pollution Reduction and Mangrove Conservation and Restoration, all of which are included in the Green Credit program.

The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change issued the Green Credit Rules (notified under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986) and subsequent technical methodologies - including the tree plantation calculation methodology published on 12 October 2023 - to operationalise a voluntary mechanism that awards credits for specified conservation and mitigation activities and supports measures such as a degraded land inventory.

Accordingly, every activity listed in the question is covered by the Green Credit provisions.

Both 1 and 2

Statement 1 is correct. The Tropical Forests Forever Facility (TFFF) is structured as a permanent, self-financing investment vehicle intended to mobilize and invest $125 billion. The design uses an initial tranche of concessional/public/philanthropic capital (reported at about $25 billion) to crowd in roughly $100 billion of private investment; the vehicle is intended to invest that capital and channel the investment returns as ongoing payments to participating developing tropical-forest countries in exchange for maintaining standing forest cover.

Statement 2 is correct. Public reports around the facility's announcement indicate that India is expected to participate as an Observer to the TFFF.

Therefore, both statements are correct.

C: 2 and 3 only

Statement 1 is incorrect. The institution is the Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park located in Darjeeling, West Bengal, at an altitude of about 7,000 feet, not in Leh.

Statement 2 is correct. The zoo pioneered the establishment of a DNA bank for Himalayan species and has focused conservation and genetic-sampling efforts on high-altitude taxa such as the snow leopard and the red panda, making it the first Indian zoo known to preserve DNA samples of wildlife native to snowy habitats.

Statement 3 is correct. In 2014 the park was recognized with the Earth Heroes Award presented by the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) for its conservation contributions.

Hence, only statements 2 and 3 are true.

Biosphere Reserves are designated to protect ecosystems and species within their natural environments under the UNESCO Man and the Biosphere (MAB) programme, and therefore represent in-situ conservation.

Ex-situ conservation refers to conservation measures carried out outside the natural habitat under human supervision - for example, Botanical Gardens, Zoos, Aquariums, seed banks and gene banks; typical methods include captive breeding, cultivation and cryopreservation.

Because Biosphere Reserves conserve species and ecological processes in situ (often using zonation such as core, buffer and transition areas) they are not an ex-situ approach; they are an in-situ strategy that also supports research and sustainable development.