National Conservation Programmes in India play a crucial role in protecting tigers, elephants, dolphins, gharials, and other endangered species. Learn about flagship initiatives like Project Tiger, Project Elephant, and Project Dolphin for biodiversity preservation.
National Conservation Programmes in India: A Comprehensive Overview of Wildlife Protection Efforts (2025)
India is home to nearly 8% of the world’s biodiversity. With rapidly growing human populations, urbanisation, and habitat loss, the government has launched multiple flagship national conservation programmes to protect endangered species — a topic that frequently appears in competitive exams (environment, general studies, geography, ecology). These programmes aim to safeguard tigers, elephants, dolphins, gharials, sloth bears, vultures, and many other threatened species.
Key Wildlife Conservation Programmes: An Overview
Project Tiger (1973)
Launched in 1973, Project Tiger is among India’s earliest and most successful wildlife conservation schemes. Initially covering nine tiger reserves, today it spans more than 50 reserves across the country. Under this scheme, core-buffer management ensures stricter protection in core zones, while buffer zones allow for regulated human use.
Main objectives include augmenting tiger populations, preventing poaching, restoring habitats, ensuring water resources, fire protection, and community-based eco-development where needed.
Project Elephant (1992)
Launched in 1992, Project Elephant focuses on the conservation of the Asian Elephant. Key aims include protecting elephant habitats and corridors, mitigating human–elephant conflict, and ensuring the welfare of elephants — both wild and domesticated. States such as Assam, Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and Odisha are major focus areas.
Project Dolphin (2020)
Introduced in 2020, Project Dolphin addresses the protection of India’s river and marine dolphins — especially the Ganges River Dolphin and the Indian Ocean Humpback Dolphin. The initiative aims at ensuring healthy river ecosystems, reducing pollution and underwater noise, preserving dolphin habitats and breeding grounds, and raising community awareness
Project Crocodile (1975) and Project Gharial (2008)
Project Crocodile, started in 1975, focuses on protecting crocodilian species including the Mugger Crocodile, Saltwater Crocodile, and the Gharial. Activities include captive breeding, habitat protection, wetland conservation, and release programmes. By 2008, Project Gharial was introduced for more targeted conservation of the critically endangered gharial — emphasizing nest protection, river ecosystem revival, and population monitoring.
Other Notable Programmes
Beyond these flagship programmes, India runs several other conservation efforts for diverse fauna:
- Asiatic Lion Conservation Programme / Lion Landscape Development (Gir Forest, Gujarat) for wild Asiatic lions.
- Project Sloth Bear — for sloth bear population protection and mitigating human–bear conflict.
- Project Snow Leopard — for snow leopards in Himalayan states; Project Hangul — for Kashmir stag; Project Great Indian Bustard, Project Blackbuck, Project Vulture, and more — targeting species ranging from grassland fauna to vultures and rhinos.
Why These Conservation Efforts Matter
These programmes are vital not only for preserving India’s natural heritage but also for maintaining ecological balance. By protecting apex predators like tigers, umbrella species such as elephants, or river-ecosystem species like dolphins and gharials, the initiatives contribute to biodiversity preservation, habitat restoration, and sustainable ecology.
Moreover, many of these programmes facilitate eco-tourism, generate livelihoods for local communities, and foster human-wildlife coexistence. They also ensure India’s commitment to global biodiversity goals, underlining its role as a global leader in wildlife conservation.
Why This News Is Important
The recent summarised report on national conservation programmes serves as a timely and comprehensive update on India’s wildlife protection efforts — key for aspirants of civil services, defense, police, banking, railways, and other government exams that include wildlife & environment sections.
First, the update consolidates knowledge about multiple flagship conservation schemes — many of which are repeatedly asked in previous year question papers. Knowing their names, launch years, target species, and primary objectives gives aspirants a solid foundation for both objective and descriptive questions.
Second, with growing environmental challenges — habitat loss, climate change, human-wildlife conflict — India’s conservation agenda is evolving. Newer initiatives like Project Dolphin (2020) and renewed focus on conflict mitigation reflect current government priorities. Understanding these shifts can help candidates frame relevant analytical answers on environment policy and wildlife-management strategies.
Finally, this consolidated view helps link conservation programmes to larger themes: ecological balance, climate resilience, sustainable development, and community participation — all relevant for essay-type questions and GS mains answers.
Historical Context: From Early Conservation to Modern Multi-Species Approach
India’s conservation journey began with early efforts like the 1970s launch of Project Tiger (1973) and Project Crocodile (1975), aimed respectively at saving tigers and crocodilian species from severe decline due to hunting and habitat loss.
As threats multiplied — deforestation, habitat fragmentation, human settlement expansion — the need for broader, more inclusive conservation increased. Recognizing that protecting apex or umbrella species also safeguards entire ecosystems, the government expanded its focus. Programmes like Project Elephant (1992) addressed large mammals requiring vast corridors, while others targeted vulnerable species in specific biomes (grasslands, wetlands, riverine systems, Himalayas).
In recent decades, conservation philosophy has further evolved: from species-centric to ecosystem-centric, integrating habitat restoration, community involvement, conflict mitigation, and scientific monitoring. Newer initiatives — such as projects for dolphins, sloth bears, gharials, vultures, and bustards — reflect this shift. This evolution underscores the government’s adaptive strategy to conserve biodiversity in a rapidly changing environmental and socio-economic landscape
Key Takeaways from This News
| # | Key Takeaway |
|---|---|
| 1 | India runs multiple national conservation programmes covering a wide range of species — from apex predators to aquatic and grassland animals. |
| 2 | Project Tiger (1973) remains a cornerstone scheme; today it covers over 50 tiger reserves across India. |
| 3 | Newer initiatives like Project Dolphin (2020) and Project Sloth Bear (2009–10) demonstrate shifting government focus toward ecosystem-wide protection and human-wildlife conflict mitigation. |
| 4 | Conservation efforts now include species like gharials, vultures, Great Indian Bustard, blackbuck, snow leopard, and more — showing a diversified approach beyond traditional flagship animals. |
| 5 | These programmes serve dual purposes: protecting biodiversity and providing socio-economic benefits through eco-tourism, livelihoods, and sustainable coexistence. |
FAQs: Frequently Asked Questions
1. What is Project Tiger and when was it launched?
Project Tiger is a flagship wildlife conservation programme aimed at protecting tigers and their habitats in India. It was launched in 1973 and now covers over 50 tiger reserves.
2. Which programme focuses on the conservation of Asian elephants in India?
Project Elephant, launched in 1992, focuses on protecting Asian elephants, ensuring their habitats and migration corridors are preserved, and mitigating human-elephant conflict.
3. What are the objectives of Project Dolphin?
Project Dolphin (2020) aims to protect river and marine dolphins, restore their habitats, reduce water pollution and noise, and promote community awareness for their conservation.
4. Which programme targets gharials and crocodiles specifically?
Project Crocodile (1975) and Project Gharial (2008) focus on the protection and population revival of crocodiles and gharials in India through captive breeding and habitat conservation.
5. Why are national conservation programmes important for India?
These programmes preserve biodiversity, maintain ecological balance, support sustainable livelihoods through eco-tourism, and help India achieve global environmental and biodiversity targets.
6. Name two conservation programmes targeting critically endangered species besides tigers and elephants.
Project Snow Leopard and Project Great Indian Bustard focus on conserving snow leopards in Himalayan regions and the Great Indian Bustard in grasslands respectively.
7. How do these conservation programmes benefit local communities?
Programs provide eco-tourism opportunities, livelihood support, and community engagement in wildlife protection, reducing human-wildlife conflict.
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