Mizoram Museum Declared as India's 21st Designated Repository
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Why in News
- The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has notified the Natural History Museum in Mizoram as India's 21st Designated Repository under the Biological Diversity Act, 2002, following recommendations from the National Biodiversity Authority.
About Designated Repositories and NHM Mizoram
- Designated Repositories serve as critical official institutions that preserve authenticated biological specimens collected under the provisions of the Biological Diversity Act, 2002.
- The Natural History Museum was set up in 2022 under Mizoram University, which is a Central University situated inside the biodiversity-rich Indo-Burma Biodiversity Hotspot.
Specimens and Role of Museum
- The museum will maintain voucher specimens of plant groups like pteridophytes and macrofungi, along with animal species including reptiles, amphibians, fishes, moths, beetles, and butterflies.
- It will function as a central depository for type specimens of newly discovered species, assisting scientists with species identification, traceability, and biodiversity research.
Regional Biodiversity and Significance
- Mizoram and the wider North-Eastern region harbour an immense range of flora and fauna, containing over 7,500 species of flowering plants and more than 2,000 faunal species.
- Safeguarding these biological specimens supports long-term conservation and aids ecological restoration during habitat loss, natural disasters, or species decline.
Relevance to Biodiversity Goals
- This recognition strengthens ex situ conservation efforts and advances National Biodiversity Target 4 under India's National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan 2024-2030.
- This step aligns directly with global biodiversity commitments made under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.