Dr Bhargab Bhagawati
(Medical & Health Officer - I Government of Assam)
‘‘The clearest way into the universe is through a forest wilderness.” Environmental philosopher John Muir describes the superior pleasure and redemption that nature bestows. Yet, the rainforest ecosystems, covering over 12% of the world’s 31% total forest area, face a multi-front existential crisis. The cataclysm threatens thousands of unique species with extinction and eternally dysregulates the climate rhythm sustaining life.
World Rainforest Day is observed on June 22 annually to celebrate sustainable, healthy, high-rainfall woodlands, preferentially tropical rainforests, for their contribution to maintaining ecological balance, unparalleled biodiversity and supporting livelihoods. The 2026 campaign theme, “The Forest within You”, focuses on collective efforts and individual responsibilities in addressing humanity’s deep interconnection with nature, as proposed in 2017 by the Texas-headquartered non-profit organisation Rainforest Partnership. Digital toolkits, virtual conferences, indigenous initiatives like eco-education, and habitat restoration strategies are integral to the mission.
Typified by dense forests and moisture-laden vegetation with closed canopies, ‘rainforest’ stems from the original German term ‘Regenwald’ (rain falling from clouds). Wildfires are rare in this ecosystem, which sustains the nascence and preservation of species that hold cultural and cosmological importance. Niche differentiation, adaptive radiation, and genetic mutations, such as plant defence mechanisms and thermal and metabolic tolerances developed by insects, drive species adaptation. Genetic divergences caused by ice-age geographical barriers and subsequent co-evolution in finding warm climates offer an immense evolutionary narrative. Being an active backdrop of evolution, rainforests moulded human civilization amidst ecological changes. Their flora and fauna intertwine in an array of modern medical drug derivatives from pilocarpine to vincristine and digitalis to neostigmine. Tropical rainforests have higher temperatures and abundant rainfall, ranging from 2000 to 10000 mm annually, with no dry spell. Harbouring more than 70% of global species, these warm-humid conditions produce up to 75% of their rain through evapo-transpiration.
The Amazon Rainforest, spanning 6 million sq. km across nine South American nations, houses approximately 2.5 million insects, 2000 birds and mammals, 438,000 socio-economically vital plants and 16,000 tree species and forms an adept system of biological interaction. Amazonian trees pump and release nearly 1000 L of water into the atmosphere daily, creating a “flying river” carrying moisture. The forests act as sponges, storing massive volumes of water and sequestering excess CO?. For over 11,000 years, forest gardening and the use of ‘terra preta’ (a type of rich soil made from charcoal and nutrients) have shown that indigenous tribes like the Jivaro and Yanomami have practised better farming methods. Similarly, the 2 million sq. km Congolian Rainforest in Africa boasts more than 10,000 species of plants and animals alike, with the fertile Congo River basin providing ground for agriculture and trade among tribes like the Mbuti and Chimbu.
In India, the Western Ghats forests, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, abound with diverse flora and fauna, with 35% endemic plant species. Meanwhile, the Andaman & Nicobar Islands Rainforest, comprising Mount Manipur National Park, serves as an important bird area and butterfly hotspot.
The Northeastern rainforests represent a cradle of rich biodiversity that has unfolded gradually over time. The 585 sq. km Dehing Patkai Rainforest, spread across Assam’s Tinsukia, Dibrugarh and Charaideo districts with an extension into Arunachal Pradesh, is known as ‘the Amazon of the East’. The Dehing Patkai National Park forms an integral part of this ecosystem.
The hoolock gibbon is a prime attraction with other primate species like macaques, langurs, and rhesus monkeys alongside trees like hollong, nahor, Garcinia, etc., and birds, including white-winged wood ducks, owls, vultures, and blue-eared kingfishers.
Canopy under siege:
Biodiversity in the megabiomes of the Amazon, the Congolese forests and the split biome of Northeast India portends separate vulnerabilities. The tropics lost 4.4 million hectares of primary forests recently, with the Amazon bottlenecked at 26% forest cover loss by 2022. Vast tracts of land are cleared for cattle ranching (which accounts for 14% of annual global deforestation), as well as for soybean and palm cultivation and logging, resulting in water cycle disruption, reduced rainfall, and dysregulated water flow. Brazil’s 870 km long BR-319 federal highway speeds up deforestation, while indigenous subsistence farming adds a shearing stress. The bushmeat trade and poaching engulf the Congolese rainforest, endangering small mammals, gorillas, and African elephants.
Indian forest areas like the Western Ghats face encroachments, infrastructure expansions, commercial plantations, mining and disrupted animal corridors degrading the topsoil, ensuing landslides and increasing seismic risks.
Simultaneously, the Dehing Patkai Rainforest struggles against illegal mining (Northeast Coalfields generated approximately Rs 5,000 crore of coal illegally) and a shrinking landscape due to settlements. Valuable trees like Hollong, Nahor, and Tita Sopa are being felled for commerce, and intermittent forest fires are occurring because of a drying forest climate.
Mitigation efforts must be tailored to the specific landscapes of diverse ecosystems through robust government actions and individual efforts.
Amazonian cattle laundering needs rigorous monitoring with satellite surveillance. Indigenous territories must be legally recognised for better tribal accountability, and infrastructure projects must undergo environmental impact assessments.
Forest management rights for Congolese locals can bolster the march against illegal logging and poaching through community-based resource management. AI-driven acoustic monitoring and REDD+ programmes, incorporated into national legislation, will help manage forests and improve carbon sinks. Civil society must push for Eco-Sensitive Zone implementation for the Western Ghats, enforcing a ban on mining, quarrying and red industries (pollution index > 60). Incentive-based models like AERF’s ‘My Forest’ initiative and building animal corridors to fortify the ecological niches will inundate progress. Eco-tourism, local skill development programmes, and conservation awareness in the Dehing Patkai biome will help sustain the declining hoolock gibbon population (which has decreased by 90%). Regulated legal sanctions and activism from groups like ‘Nature’s Beckon’ will help protect regional biodiversity.
Individual efforts can have a significant impact. Opting for plant-based foods with FSC logos, supporting local farmers, using public transport, purchasing environmentally friendly products bearing the ‘1% for the Planet’ logo, and media advocacy with continuous plantation drives are vital.
The public’s green consciousness, combined with grassroots mobilisation, will play a crucial role in sustaining the lungs of the Earth in its race against time. Achieving SDG 13 (Climate action) and SDG 15 (Life on Land) requires fully leveraging global cooperation frameworks like the UNCBD 30x30 and COP28 TFFF, which rewards nations for preserving standing forests for a thriving bioeconomy. India’s ambition for the Viksit Bharat 2047 target must ensure convergence of economic development with ecological sustainability.