The National Biodiversity Authority (NBA) has sanctioned ₹82 lakh to the Andhra Pradesh Biodiversity Board for the conservation of Red Sanders, an endemic and endangered species of the Eastern Ghats.

About Red Sanders

• Scientific Name: Pterocarpus santalinus
• Common Name: Red Sandalwood or Red Sanders
• Family: Fabaceae (Legume family)
• Native Range: Eastern Ghats of southern India, especially in Andhra Pradesh, districts like Chittoor, Kadapa, Kurnool, and Anantapur.
• Habitat: Rocky hillsides, dry deciduous forest zones, often on steep slopes with shallow soils.
• Wood Qualities: Deep reddish hue, dense, fine-grained, heavy, and durable.
• Uses: 
  • Luxury furniture and decorative veneers
  • Musical instruments (woodwind, percussion)
  • Inlay work and carvings
  • Traditional medicine (in Ayurveda, Siddha)
  • Staves and prestige wood products
• High Commercial Value: Its rarity and desirability have made it highly sought after, leading to illegal harvesting and smuggling.
• Major Threats: Illegal logging and smuggling, Habitat loss and fragmentation and Regeneration challenges – low natural regeneration, seed predation, grazing
• Conservation Status:
  • Listed under the Schedule IV of Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 in India
  • Included in Appendix II of CITES — trade allowed only under strict regulation
  • IUCN Status: Endangered

About the Initiative

• Objective: Raise 1 lakh saplings of Red Sanders to be supplied to farmers, supporting the Trees Outside Forests (ToF) programme.
• Funding source: ABS mechanism, which ensures fair and equitable sharing of benefits from biological resources with local communities, individuals, and Biodiversity Management Committees (BMCs).
• Community role: Local and tribal communities to be directly involved in nursery development, plantation, and care.
• Employment Impact: Promotes skill-building, livelihood generation, and grassroots stewardship in conservation.

Significance of the Initiative

• Biodiversity Conservation: Supports protection of a critically threatened endemic species.
• Community Empowerment: Employment and skill-building for local communities via conservation-linked livelihoods.
• Policy in Action: Demonstrates how ABS provisions can translate into community-driven conservation.
• Global Commitments: Strengthens India’s adherence to Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and its National Biodiversity Targets.

DOWNLOAD PDF