GUWAHATI: The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has listed the Western Ghats and two of India’s national parks Manas in Assam and Sundarbans in West Bengal among Asia’s ailing natural World Heritage sites, highlighting growing concerns over biodiversity loss and poor ecosystem health.
According to IUCN’s latest World Heritage Outlook 4 report, both Manas and Sundarbans have been classified under the “significant concern” category. These transboundary sites extend into Bhutan and Bangladesh respectively. The report assessed 63 natural World Heritage sites across Asia (excluding Arab nations), revealing that only 17% are in “good” condition, 51% are “good with some concerns,” 30% face “significant concern,” and one Indonesia’s Tropical Rainforest Heritage of Sumatra is rated “critical.”
Compared to the 2020 assessment, the number of sites rated “good” and “good with some concerns” declined slightly, while those under “significant concern” increased by 4%. Among Indian sites, the Great Himalayan National Park, Kaziranga, Keoladeo, and Nanda Devi–Valley of Flowers are rated “good with some concerns,” while Sikkim’s Khangchendzonga National Park stands out as the only site with a “good” outlook in India.
The report also highlighted the ongoing loss of evergreen forest cover in the Western Ghats, estimating a 5% decline in recent years. China leads Asia in well-managed protected areas, with seven of its sites, including Mount Huangshan and the Chengjiang Fossil Site, rated “good.”
Climate change has now surpassed hunting as the most pressing threat to Asia natural heritage sites. Tourism ranks second, followed by invasive alien species, which have newly entered the top three threats. The IUCN noted that roads and railways have also emerged as major pressures on protected areas, fragmenting habitats and accelerating urban and agricultural expansion.
High demand for land, coupled with forest fires, encroachment, illegal logging, and infrastructure development, continues to drive biodiversity loss across South Asia even inside legally protected zones. Road construction, in particular, has opened forests to settlement, resource extraction, and unregulated tourism, worsening ecological degradation.
On site management, the report found that about half of Asia’s World Heritage sites enjoy “mostly effective” or “highly effective” protection, but this marks a slight decline since 2020. Currently, 3% of sites are rated “highly effective” and 46% “mostly effective,” while nearly half face issues of concern regarding protection and management.
Despite the challenges, the IUCN report noted several “good practice examples” of conservation efforts, including initiatives at Mount Wuyi in China and the Sinharaja Forest Reserve in Sri Lanka, where local communities and youth are actively involved in protecting natural heritage through education and awareness programs.
The findings underscore the urgent need for stronger conservation actions and sustainable tourism management across India’s heritage sites to prevent further decline in their ecological health.