The effective management practices followed in the National Parks (NP) and Protected Areas (PA) of Kerala has won the State the top position in the Management Effectiveness Evaluation (MEE) carried out by the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change for 2020-2025.
Kerala was the only State to get a “Very Good” rating with a score of 76.22%. Karnataka (74.24), Punjab (71.74), and Himachal Pradesh (71.36) came next with “Good” rating, according to the report.
The Eravikulam NP (ENP) of Kerala and Dachigam NP in Jammu and Kashmir emerged as the highest-scoring individual PAs with a MEE score of 92.97% each.
The Mathikettan Shola National Park of Kerala was among the “other well-managed sites” with a score of 90.63%, according to the report. Kerala has 21 protected areas to its credit.
Incidentally, the ENP is one of the 39 serial sites of the Western Ghats, which were declared as a World Heritage Site by the World Heritage Committee of UNESCO for its Outstanding Universal Value in 2012.
