Forests: Forest programmes and REDD+

Gymnosperms (gymnos = naked, sperma = seed) bear ovules that are not enclosed in an ovary wall, so after fertilisation the seeds remain exposed and no fruit is formed. Pines, cycads, deodar and junipers belong here. In angiosperms (both monocots and dicots) the ovary ripens into a fruit that encloses the seeds, while bryophytes and pteridophytes produce no seeds at all.

Statements 1 and 2 are correct. Seagrasses (such as Zostera, Halophila and Cymodocea) are true angiosperms: they have roots, rhizomes and leaves, flower and pollinate under water, and form meadows in shallow coastal waters such as the Gulf of Mannar and Palk Bay, where they feed dugongs and sea turtles. Seaweeds are algae (green, brown and red) with a thallus anchored by a holdfast and no true roots, stems or leaves. Statement 3 is wrong: seaweeds reproduce by spores and gametes, not seeds; only seagrasses form seeds.

Statements 1 and 2 are correct. Pteridophytes reproduce by spores and do not form seeds. The water fern Azolla carries the cyanobacterium Anabaena azollae in its leaf cavities; the pair fixes atmospheric nitrogen and is grown in rice fields as a biofertiliser and also as green fodder. Statement 3 is wrong: in pteridophytes the main plant body is the sporophyte; the gametophyte (prothallus) is small and short-lived. A dominant gametophyte is the mark of bryophytes.

Statements 1 and 2 are correct. Neelakurinji is a shrub that carpets the high- altitude shola–grasslands of the Western Ghats — notably around Munnar and Eravikulam National Park in Kerala and the Nilgiri and Palani hills — with blue-violet flowers once in about twelve years; the last mass bloom in Munnar was in 2018. Statement 3 is wrong: it belongs to the acanthus family, Acanthaceae, and grows on the ground as a shrub; it is not an orchid.

Statements 1 and 2 are correct. Orchids produce huge numbers of microscopic dust seeds without endosperm, so in the wild a seed germinates only after it is colonised by a suitable mycorrhizal fungus that supplies sugars. Vanilla comes from the cured fruit pods of the climbing orchid Vanilla planifolia, native to Mexico and now grown in Kerala and Karnataka. Statement 3 is wrong: many orchids are terrestrial, growing in soil or leaf litter, and some, such as lady's slipper orchids, are mostly ground-dwelling.

The Khasi Hills Community REDD+ project was India's first (c). REDD+ pays communities for keeping forests standing, through carbon credits. Plan Vivo is a standard for community-led projects. India's first such project is the Khasi Hills Community REDD+ project around Mawphlang, Meghalaya, run by a federation of Khasi village councils (hima). Options (a), (b) and (d), the Uttarakhand, ICFRE-ICIMOD and Sikkim Mamley Kamrang projects, came later or use other routes.

Notice why Mawphlang is famous: its sacred grove, a forest protected by local beliefs. REDD+ stands for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation, plus conservation and sustainable management. It is recognised under Article 5 of the Paris Agreement.

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All three are correct (d). REDD+ (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation, plus conservation, sustainable management and enhancing carbon stocks) pays developing countries for keeping forests standing. UN-REDD, started in 2008, is run jointly by the FAO, UNDP and UNEP. If it is well designed, it brings co-benefits: standing forests protect biodiversity (1), healthy and connected forests are more resilient to climate stress (2), and payments that reach forest communities help reduce poverty (3).

The word "proper design" in the question is the clue. Badly designed REDD+ can push out tribal people. That is why safeguards on indigenous rights matter, and in India they link with the Forest Rights Act, 2006.

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Statements 1 and 3 are correct (c). The Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (World Bank, 2008) brings together governments, businesses, civil society and indigenous peoples (1). Its Readiness Fund and Carbon Fund help countries prepare for REDD+ and pay them for verified emission cuts (3). Statement 2 is wrong: it does not give research grants to universities or individual scientists.

REDD+ pays developing countries to keep forests standing, also rewarding conservation and sustainable management. Notice how forests are treated as climate assets, linking this to the BioCarbon Fund in the previous question.

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Statements 1 and 3 are correct (b). NIRANTAR groups the Environment Ministry's institutes into verticals. Statement 1 is right: Ecosystem Survey and Analysis is led by the Botanical Survey of India, Kolkata, with bodies like the FSI and ZSI. Statement 3 is right: Capacity Development Support is led by the Indian Institute of Forest Management, Bhopal. Statement 2 is wrong: Research and Management of Ecosystem Service is led by ICFRE, Dehradun; the Central Zoo Authority is only a member. So options (a), (c) and (d) fail.

Notice the purpose: pooling institutes avoids duplicate work and links research to climate adaptation and resilience. Other Ministry bodies include the Wildlife Institute of India (Dehradun) and GBPNIHE for the Himalaya.

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Statements II and III are correct (d). Statement II is right: the peacock tarantula (Gooty tarantula) is found only in a few forest patches of the Eastern Ghats, mainly in Andhra Pradesh. Statement III is right: it lives in tree holes, so it is arboreal. Statement I is wrong: it is a spider, an arachnid, not a crustacean, and it eats insects, not plants. So options (a), (b) and (c) fail.

Notice its status: it is Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, mainly due to deforestation and the pet trade, valued for its bright blue colour. It is named after Gooty town, where it was first found. Its bite is painful but rarely dangerous.

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Two statements are correct (b). Community reserves were added to the Wild Life (Protection) Act in 2003. They are notified on community or private land with the people's consent; note that under the Act it is the State Government, not the Centre, that notifies them. Statement 1 is wrong: a Community Reserve Management Committee runs them, not the Chief Wildlife Warden. Statement 2 is right: hunting is banned. Statement 3 is right: people may collect non-timber forest produce. Statement 4 is wrong: changes in land use, including traditional farming or jhum, are not allowed.

Notice the four types of protected areas: national parks, sanctuaries, conservation reserves and community reserves. Many community reserves are in Meghalaya and Nagaland, where communities own most forests.

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