Biosphere reserves, national parks and wildlife sanctuaries are categories of area-based protection discussed under in situ conservation. India also has sacred groves: forest patches traditionally set aside and protected through cultural or religious practices. NCERT mentions Khasi and Jaintia Hills, Aravalli Hills and parts of the Western Ghats among examples. These patches can shelter rare or threatened plants.

Protected-area names and counts printed in a reprint may reflect older source data; avoid stating the book’s counts as today’s legal inventory. A sacred grove is a living natural site, not a frozen seed bank. Different legal categories have different management rules, so the chapter’s grouping does not mean they have identical restrictions. When exam questions classify a mechanism, physical protection of habitat and community interactions is the in situ feature.

Worked example: A naturally occurring grove safeguarded by local custom shelters wild plants where they grow, so it is in situ protection.

NCERT trap: Historical park counts in a chapter must not replace current government registry numbers.

NEET method: Choose “in situ” when the target persists in its native habitat, regardless of whether protection is legal or cultural.

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Biodiversity and Conservation

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