Tamil Nadu Timeline

EnvironmentMGR era

Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve established, India's first

· Nilgiris district

Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve established, India's first
Vpad236, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

India's first biosphere reserve was created from the Nilgiri hills and nearby forests, stretching across Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka.

UNESCO's Man and the Biosphere Programme provided the framework when, in September 1986, more than 5,000 square km of the Nilgiri hills and adjoining forests became the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve. No biosphere reserve had existed in India before it. Its territory extends into Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka and takes in protected areas including Mudumalai. Tribal peoples such as the Toda, Kota, Irula and Kurumba live within it.

Related events

  1. 1868

    1. Aug 1868Nilgiris districtGovernance

      Nilgiris separated from Coimbatore district

      In August 1868 the Nilgiri hills were detached from Coimbatore district and given a commissioner of their own.

  2. 1974

    1. 1974Anamalai Tiger ReserveEnvironment

      Anaimalai Wildlife Sanctuary notified

      The forests of the Anaimalai hills in the Western Ghats were notified as a wildlife sanctuary, later the Anamalai Tiger Reserve.

  3. 1986

    1. 1986Gulf of Mannar Marine National ParkEnvironment

      Gulf of Mannar Marine National Park declared

      Twenty-one islets lying offshore between Thoothukudi and Dhanushkodi were designated the Gulf of Mannar Marine National Park.

  4. 1988

    1. 1988KalakkadEnvironment

      Kalakkad Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve created

      A tiger reserve was formed in the southern Western Ghats by joining the Kalakkad and Mundanthurai wildlife sanctuaries.

  5. 2001

    1. 2001Agasthyamalai Biosphere ReserveEnvironment

      Agasthyamalai Biosphere Reserve established

      A biosphere reserve was created at the southern tip of the Western Ghats, spanning Tirunelveli and Kanyakumari districts and southern Kerala.

  6. 2012

    1. 2012Nilgiris districtEnvironment

      Western Ghats inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site

      The Western Ghats mountain range, which runs through western Tamil Nadu including the Nilgiris and Anamalai hills, became a World Heritage Site.

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