General Knowledge / India GK / National Parks and Heritage Sites
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Biosphere Reserves are the UNESCO designated sites located in different countries. These sites can be large areas extending over marine or terrestrial ecosystems or combination of both. The concept of Biosphere Reserve was started by UNESCO in 1971.
The main purpose of Biosphere reserve is to conserve the biodiversity of the region and at the same time balance the social and economic development while upholdiong the associated cultural values. A Biosphere reserve is partitioned into 3 zones namely, Core Zone, Buffer Zone and Transition Zone. The first Biosphere reserve in India that was established in 1986 was Nilgiri. By declaring and establishing Biosphere Reserves, National Parks, Wildlife Sanctuaries and Wetland Sites, Government is trying to conserve the nature as much as possible.
There are 18 Biosphere reserves in India. The following sequence shows the list of Biosphere Reserves in India. The Biosphere Reserves are arranged from North to South.
| Sl. No. | Biosphere Reserve Name | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cold Desert | Himachal Pradesh |
| 2 | Nanda Devi | Uttarakhand |
| 3 | Dihang-Dibang | Arunachal Pradesh |
| 4 | Khangchendzonga | Sikkim |
| 5 | Manas | Assam |
| 6 | Dibru-Saikhowa | Assam |
| 7 | Sunderbans | West Bengal |
| 8 | Nokrek | Meghalaya |
| 9 | Pachmarhi | Madhya Pradesh |
| 10 | Panna | Madhya Pradesh |
| 11 | Achanakmar-Amarkantak | Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh |
| 12 | Kachchh (largest in area) | Gujarat |
| 13 | Simlipal | Odisha |
| 14 | Seshachalam Hills | Andhra Pradesh |
| 15 | Nilgiri | Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu |
| 16 | Gulf of Mannar | Tamil Nadu |
| 17 | Agasthyamalai | Kerala and Tamil Nadu |
| 18 | Great Nicobar | Andaman and Nicobar Islands |