Protected Areas (Biodiversity).
Syllabus: UPSC Pre GS1: Environmental Ecology, Biodiversity & Climate Change; Mains GS3
National parks for UPSC: Wildlife Protection Act rules, park vs sanctuary, first and largest parks, key parks by State, tiger reserves and…
NHAI released a document on wildlife mitigation measures during National Wildlife Week (2-8 October 2026). It records over 2,150 wildlife crossing structures built or proposed on national highways and about ₹19,700 crore spent in five years on such measures, from animal underpasses and overpasses to viaducts, tunnels and canopy crossings.
UPSC angle: Prelims: Wildlife Week, types of crossings. · Mains GS-III: conservation and infrastructure.
8 Oct 2026
On 5 October 2026 KJP21, a 32-month-old Indian-born female cheetah, gave birth to five cubs at Kuno National Park. India now has 60 cheetahs, 41 of them born in India. KJP21 is the third Indian-born female to breed, and the father is from Botswana, starting a Botswanan lineage in India.
UPSC angle: Prelims: Kuno, cheetah facts. · Mains GS-III: species reintroduction.
5 Oct 2026
On 4 October 2026 two captive-bred male Great Indian Bustards were released into the wild at Sam in Desert National Park, Jaisalmer. The breeding centres at Sam and Ramdevra hold 97 birds, 57 of them bred in captivity. The release marks a shift in the decade-old recovery programme from breeding birds to putting them back in the wild.
UPSC angle: Prelims: GIB status, Desert NP. · Mains GS-III: species conservation.
4 Oct 2026
On 2 October 2026 tigress T138, translocated from Valmiki Tiger Reserve in Bihar, was released in Buxa Tiger Reserve, West Bengal. It begins a phased Tiger Reintroduction Programme to rebuild a self-sustaining tiger population in Buxa, after years of prey build-up, grassland restoration and community work under a project supported by NTCA and WII.
UPSC angle: Prelims: tiger reserve–State matching. · Mains: Reintroduction vs natural recovery.
2 Oct 2026
On World Lion Day, 10 August 2026, the Environment Minister said the Asiatic lion population rose from 523 in 2015 to 891 in 2025. Project Lion, announced on 15 August 2020, has seen the lion range grow from about 30,000 sq km in 2020 to nearly 35,000 sq km. Gir in Gujarat is the only home of wild Asiatic lions.
UPSC angle: Prelims: lion facts.
10 Aug 2026
India marked Global Tiger Day on 29 July 2026 at an NTCA event in New Delhi. Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav said India now has 3682 tigers and 58 tiger reserves. NTCA launched an eco-tourism webpage linking all tiger reserves and released five publications, including a security audit of 24 tiger reserves.
UPSC angle: Prelims: NTCA; Tiger Range Countries.
29 Jul 2026