Background :- 

The broken hill-ranges of the Eastern Ghats spread across Odisha, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu, are home to unique ecosystems.  Though it has over 450 endemic plant species, the region remains one of the most exploited and degraded ecosystems of India.

With intensifying agricultural practices, urbanization and pressures from mining and deforestation, the precious eastern ghats habitat of endemic and rare, endangered and threatened (RET) species could be reduced, even leading to species loss, notes a new study.

Findings of the report :-

• The study team looked at available plant species data and identified 22 endemic species recorded from over 250 locations and 28 Rare, Endangered and Threatened (RET) Species species recorded from nearly 800 locations in the Eastern Ghats. 
• Raising pressure from anthropogenic activities: The results published in Environmental Monitoring and Assessment show that by 2050 the total human population in the Eastern Ghats region is expected to reach 2.6 million. The highly threatening human activities in the Eastern Ghats area are mining, urbanization/settlements, dam construction, firewood collection, and agricultural expansion. Unsupervised tourism also affects the distribution of these species. 
• The mean temperature and rainfall were all crucial for the plant species and simulations showed that the temperature is likely to increase by 1.8 degrees Celsius by 2050 to 1.98 degrees Celsius by 2070. The rainfall is also projected to increase by 113 millimeters by 2050 and 160 millimeters by 2070.
• Climate change effect: the regional or local climate change (warming) has led to frequent prolonged non-rainy days, an increased number of days with maximum and minimum temperatures resulting in loss of soil moisture and soil degradation. The occurrence of frequent forest fires has affected regeneration of the less-frequent endemic species in the forest.Studies from across the globe have shown that the tropics are losing more plant biodiversity than other regions.
• Illegal felling of trees: Most reserve forest areas in the hills of South India are controlled by the forest department, protected by the Tamil Nadu Forest Act, 1882 and Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 but it is not implemented effectively in the absence of popular support. As a result, the protection of the tress in private holdings has become a challenge.

Way forward :-

• Ecotourism with regulatory guidelines is a positive way to educate and promote conservation. The concept of eco-tourism introduced by the Forest Department in recent years, involving local forest stake-holders may be a boon to not only residents but also the biota of the entire region.The experience has been positive in Srivilliputhur Grizzled Squirrel Wildlife Sanctuary.  
• More studies and setting up species inventories to identify and record species can help with conservation efforts.
• Biodiversity conservation initiatives of Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change of Government of India and State forest departments focus on the Eastern Ghats to protect declining habitats of endemic and RET species. 
• The boundaries of national parks and sanctuaries should be redefined based on the richness of endemic and RET species.

The Eastern Ghats :-

• Stretching about 1,750 km north to south, it begins from central Odisha, continues through Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, before culminating at the Sirumalai hills facing the Western Ghats near Madurai in southern Tamil Nadu.
• They start from the Mahanadi in Odisha to the Vagai in Tamil Nadu. 
• The Eastern Ghats still contain large contiguous stretches of tropical deciduous, mixed and semi-evergreen forests.
• Rivers like Naga Nathi, Cheiyaru, Amirthiyaru, Kovilmalaiyaru, Idiyaru, Mriganda, Pennaiyaaru, Puliyancholaiaaru, Aiyaaru, Swetha nadhi, Cauvery, Sarabanga nadhi, Thirumanimuthaaru, etc, originate from the hills of the Eastern Ghats.
• Mahendra Giri (1,501 m) is the tallest peak of the Eastern Ghats.
• Waterfalls such as the Periyar Falls, Megam Falls, Beeman Falls, Killiyur Falls, Hogenakkal, Agaya Gangai, Jalagam Parai, etc, also make the land fertile apart from drawing tourists.
• The Madugula Konda range has several high peaks like Jindhagada Peak, Gali Konda and Sinkram Gutta.
• Between the Godavari and the Krishna rivers, the  Gondwana formations start. Also, KG Basin is here.
• The Eastern Ghats in Andhra Pradesh is called as Nallamalai Range. Naxalites are based here. In its southern part, there is the Palkodna range.
• In South India, there are Javadi Hills and the Shevroy-Kalrayan Hills having  1,000 m elevation. The hills run west and south-western to merge with the Western Ghats near Doddabetta in the Nilgiris.
• The Biligiri Rangan Hills in Karnataka is part of Eastern Ghats.
• The Northern section of the Eastern Ghats, north of the Godavari River, locates the Papikonda National Park.
• The endemic fauna of the Eastern Ghats is the Jerdon's courser (Rhinoptilus bitorquatus) and grey slender loris (Loris lydekkerianus).
• Eastern ghats are home to Asiatic elephants Nilgiri Tahr, Leopards, Gaurs, Sambar, and tigers, etc.
• The forests include dry evergreen ones, semi-evergreen forests, southern tropical dry mixed deciduous forests, dry savannah forests, etc.
• Valuable trees like Eetti (Dalbergia latifolia), Semmaram (Pterocarpus santalinus), Vengai (Pterocarpus marsupium), Pala (Artocarpus heterophyllus), etc, are present here in addition to rare, endangered species such as Mara uri (Antiaris taxicaria), Hildegardia populifolia, etc.
• Though Mahogany (Swietenia mahogany) grows mostly in moist regions, it has been around in Pachamalai — a proof of the richness of the ecosystem.
• The aromatic and valuable sandal trees once grew abundantly in Chitheri, Javadhis, Yercaud, Kolli hills, Pacha malai, Bodhamalai, etc, have been indiscriminately felled and illegally removed.
• The removal of enormous quantities of bauxite and magnesite ore from Kolli Hills and Servarayan Hills, respectively, led to the indiscriminate destruction of forests. 
• The Supreme Court, fortunately, banned the removal of minerals from these hills, once rainfall became erratic.
• Product is shifting cultivation, practiced in the northern Eastern Ghats by the indigenous Konda Reddi and Koya communities.