Kamrunag lake area in Himachal's Mandi set to be biodiversity heritage site

Tribune News Service

Mandi, July 11

The Kamrunag lake, a famous religious and tourist place, and its surrounding areas in Mandi district is set to be declared as a biodiversity heritage site. The HP State Biodiversity Board has initiated an exercise in this regard.

Dr ML Thakur, Project Coordinator of the board, said, “To discuss the issue related to the declaration of the Kamrunag lake area as a biodiversity heritage site, a meeting was held at Kandhi-Kamru Panchayat in Mandi district on Friday. Officers from the Forest and Revenue departments, members of the Biodiversity Management Committee, and gram panchayats, ‘kardaars’ of Kamru-Nag and local knowledgeable persons attended the meeting”.

“Biodiversity heritage sites are well-defined areas that are unique, ecologically-fragile ecosystems – terrestrial and waters having rich biodiversity comprising richness of wild as well as domesticated species or intra-specific categories, high endemism, and the presence of rare and threatened species,” he added.

He said, “Keeping in view the need to conserve a number of unique areas in the state, the HP State Biodiversity Board initiated the first step by organising a meeting at Gram Panchayat Soyal in Kullu district on Thursday, while the second meeting was held in Mandi district on Friday”.

“Discussions were held on the preparation of a management plan for the declaration of 800 to 1,000 years old deodar forest on the periphery of the Jamdagni Temple at Soyal village in Kullu district as a biodiversity heritage site. Similarly, once the Kamrunag lake and its surrounding areas are declared as a biodiversity heritage site, the board will provide protection for the unique trees as well as medicinal plants there,” he said.