Man and Biosphere Programme

Also called: UNESCO Man and the Biosphere Programme, MAB · Topic: Biodiversity and its Conservation · NCERT: Class 11, Ch 5 "Natural Vegetation"

Meaning

The Man and the Biosphere (MAB) Programme is a UNESCO programme, started in 1971, that works to improve the relationship between people and nature. It runs the World Network of Biosphere Reserves (WNBR), the global list of biosphere reserves that UNESCO recognises.

It matters because it shows a different way to protect nature. Local people are kept inside the system instead of being pushed out. In 2025 India's Cold Desert reserve joined the network. This makes 13 of India's 18 biosphere reserves UNESCO-listed [3]. NCERT still says 12.

Explanation

What MAB does

• Main aim: to help people and nature live together well.
• It supports research in many subjects.

• It trains the people who manage nature. This is called capacity building [2].

• Biosphere reserves came from MAB. UNESCO first proposed the idea of designating biosphere reserves in 1973-74, under MAB [2].

• WNBR: MAB runs this world list of all recognised biosphere reserves.
• A biosphere reserve is a large area of land, coast or sea, or a mix of these. It represents a typical ecosystem of its biogeographic region [2].
• A biogeographic region is a natural region with its own plants and animals, such as the Western Ghats or the Gangetic Delta.
• Local communities are treated as part of the system [2].
• MoEFCC calls these reserves "sites for experimenting with and learning about sustainable development" [2].

How a site joins the world network

• Step 1: The national government nominates the site.
• Step 2: The site must meet the minimum criteria in Article 4 of the MAB Statutory Framework [2].
• Step 3: The International Coordinating Council (ICC) of the MAB Programme makes the final decision [2].
• UNESCO decides on listing, but the country itself must first set up the reserve and nominate it.

The three zones and why they work

Zone	What is allowed	Purpose
Core zone	Legally protected. No human interference	Protects species and gene pools in their natural state
Buffer zone	Research, education, and limited use that does not harm nature	Shields the core and works as a field laboratory
Transition zone	Villages, farms and sustainable use. Outreach to local people	Links conservation with the local economy

• Cause → process → result:
• Cause: local people take fuel, fodder and grazing from the forest. This puts pressure on the core.
• Process: the scheme gives people in the buffer and transition zones extra or alternative ways to earn a living. They then need less from the forest.
• Result: there is less biotic pressure on the core zone [2]. Biotic pressure means harm caused by people and grazing animals.

The three objectives (NCERT Figure 5.9)

• Conservation: protects biodiversity at every level, from genes to species to whole ecosystems. It is done in-situ, which means in the natural home of the plants and animals [2].
• Development: gives a better life to the indigenous communities (tribal and local groups) in and around the reserve, without harming nature [2].
• Logistic support: pays for research, monitoring, education and training, so people understand how the ecosystem works [2].

Where it occurs

• World:
• In 2023 MoEFCC counted 738 reserves in 134 countries. This included 22 transboundary sites, which are sites that cross a national border [2].

• In September 2025 the 5th World Congress of Biosphere Reserves met at Hangzhou, China. UNESCO added 26 new sites. The network now has 785 sites in 142 countries [3].

• India: how the programme started

• 1979: the Indian MAB Committee identified possible sites [2].
• 1983: the Committee of Secretaries approved the setting up of biosphere reserves [2].

• 1986: the Indian National Biosphere Reserve Programme began. Nilgiri became the first reserve [2].

• India: who runs and funds it

• Reserves are funded through a sub-scheme of MoEFCC's Centrally Sponsored Scheme "Conservation of Natural Resources and Ecosystems" (CNRE) [2].
• The cost is shared 60:40 (Centre : State). For North-Eastern and Himalayan states it is 90:10 [2].
• The State Forest Department carries out the work. In Madhya Pradesh, EPCO (Environment Planning and Coordination Organisation) does it instead [2].

• India has 18 biosphere reserves covering about 91,425.11 sq km (December 2023) [2].

• India's 13 reserves on the WNBR, in the order they joined:

• Nilgiri (TN, Kerala, Karnataka), 2000
• Gulf of Mannar (TN) and Sunderban (West Bengal), 2001
• Nanda Devi (Uttarakhand), 2004
• Nokrek (Meghalaya), Pachmarhi (MP) and Similipal (Odisha), 2009
• Achanakmar-Amarkantak (MP and Chhattisgarh), 2012
• Great Nicobar (A&N Islands), 2013
• Agasthyamalai (Kerala and TN), 2016
• Khangchendzonga (Sikkim), 2018
• Panna (MP), 2020

• Cold Desert (Himachal Pradesh), 2025 [2][3]

• Cold Desert, the newest entry:

• It was added on 27 September 2025 at the Hangzhou Congress [3].
• It is India's first high-altitude cold desert biosphere reserve. It lies at 3,300–6,600 m in the Trans-Himalaya [3]. The Trans-Himalaya is the dry rain-shadow land north of the Great Himalaya.
• It covers Pin Valley NP, Chandratal, Sarchu and Kibber Wildlife Sanctuary [2][3].
• Its animals include the snow leopard, Himalayan ibex, blue sheep (bharal), Himalayan wolf, golden eagle and Himalayan snowcock [3].

• About 12,000 people live there. They rely on yak and goat herding, small farms and traditional Tibetan medicine (Sowa Rigpa) [3].

• Not on the WNBR (5 reserves): Manas (Assam), Dibru-Saikhowa (Assam), Dehang-Debang (Arunachal Pradesh), Kachchh (Gujarat) and Seshachalam (Andhra Pradesh). MoEFCC lists them as "under consideration" [2].

Don't confuse with

• National park / wildlife sanctuary: these are legal protected areas under the Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972. A biosphere reserve is not a category under that Act. It is an executive scheme of the central government, and it often contains a national park or sanctuary as its core, such as Pin Valley NP in Cold Desert [2].
• UNESCO World Heritage Site: this is a separate UNESCO list. Manas is a World Heritage Site but is not on the WNBR.
• Indian biosphere reserve vs WNBR reserve: India sets up its own biosphere reserves (18). Only those that the MAB International Coordinating Council approves join the world network (13) [2][3].
• "Fortress" conservation: national parks keep people out. The MAB model keeps local people inside the system, in the buffer and transition zones [2].

Prelims Hooks

• MAB was launched by UNESCO in 1971. UNESCO first proposed biosphere reserves in 1973-74 [2].
• The MAB International Coordinating Council decides on listing, after the national government nominates the site and it meets Article 4 of the MAB Statutory Framework [2].
• First Indian reserve and first Indian WNBR site: Nilgiri, set up in 1986 and listed in 2000 [2].
• Latest Indian WNBR entry: Cold Desert (Lahaul-Spiti, Himachal Pradesh) on 27 September 2025 at Hangzhou. This makes 13 of 18 [3].
• Not on the WNBR: Manas, Dibru-Saikhowa, Dehang-Debang, Kachchh, Seshachalam [2]. Trap: Manas is a World Heritage Site, not a WNBR site.
• Funding: sub-scheme of CNRE, shared 60:40, or 90:10 for North-Eastern and Himalayan states [2].

Mains Points

• People-inclusive conservation (GS-III):
• The core–buffer–transition model gives local people other ways to earn in the outer zones. This lowers pressure on the core [2].
• It differs from the "fortress" model of national parks, which keeps people out.

• It suits areas where people live inside the reserve, such as Agasthyamalai (Kani tribe) and Cold Desert (about 12,000 herders) [2][3].

• Gaps and limits:

• 5 of India's 18 reserves are still off the UNESCO list [2].
• A biosphere reserve has no legal status of its own. Only its core is protected, through national parks and sanctuaries.
• Some biogeographic regions have few reserves, such as the Trans-Himalaya before 2025 and the Deccan.

• Development projects can clash with conservation. The Great Nicobar port and township project sits inside a WNBR reserve that holds rainforest, leatherback turtle nesting beaches and the Shompen tribe.

• Link to global commitments:

• MAB reserves are a tool for in-situ conservation and sustainable use under the CBD (1992).
• They support area-based targets under the Kunming-Montreal GBF (2022) and the SDGs.
• The world network has grown to 785 sites in 142 countries (2025) [2][3].

Related concepts

• Biosphere reserve
• Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve
• Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve
• Nokrek Biosphere Reserve
• Manas Biosphere Reserve
• Sunderban Biosphere Reserve
• Gulf of Mannar Biosphere Reserve
• Great Nicobar Biosphere Reserve
• Similipal Biosphere Reserve
• Dibru-Saikhowa Biosphere Reserve

Read more

• Biosphere reserves and UNESCO's Man and the Biosphere Programme