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DAILY NEWS ANALYSIS

  • 01 April, 2021

  • 3 Min Read

Mahendragiri Biosphere Reserve

Mahendragiri Biosphere Reserve

Odisha government has proposed a second biosphere reserve in the southern part of the state at Mahendragiri.

  • Similipal Biosphere Reserve is Odisha’s first such reserve, which was notified in 1996.
  • The area of the proposed Mahendragiri Biosphere Reserve is spread over Gajapati and Ganjam districts in the Eastern Ghats and is near the Mahendragiri peak.

Soura Tribe:

  • They are a Munda ethnic group from eastern India living in southern Odisha and north coastal Andhra Pradesh.
  • They are known by various names such as Savara, Sabara, Sora, and Soura.
  • The Soras speak Sora, a Munda language
  • They practice shifting cultivation, with a few gradually taking up settled agriculture.

Biosphere Reserves

  • Biosphere Reserve (BR) is an international designation by UNESCO for representative parts of natural and cultural landscapes extending over a large areas of terrestrial or coastal/marine ecosystems.
  • BRs are designated to deal with the quest for economic and social development and maintenance of associated cultural values.
  • BRs are thus special environments for both people and nature and are living examples of how human beings and nature can co-exist while respecting each others’ needs.

Criteria for BR

  • A site that must contain an effectively protected and minimally disturbed core area of value of nature conservation.
  • The core area should be typical of a bio-geographical unit and large enough to sustain viable populations representing all trophic levels in the ecosystem.
  • The management authority to ensure the involvement/cooperation of local communities to bring a variety of knowledge and experiences to link biodiversity conservation and socio-economic development while managing and containing the conflicts.
  • Areas potential for preservation of traditional tribal or rural modes of living for harmonious use of the environment.

Source: Down to Earth


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05 Apr,2026

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