India Rank on Nature Conservation Index Sparks Political Debate

India ranks 176th on the Nature Conservation Index, sparking criticism from the Congress. General Secretary Jairam Ramesh questions whether the authenticity of co-developer Israel's Ben Gurion University will also be contested. The ranking places India just above countries like Kiribati, Turkey, Iraq, and Micronesia.

India's disappointing rank on the Nature Conservation Index has become a political fodder, prompting Congress to challenge the Modi government's stance on global indices. India has been placed 176th out of 180 countries on the Index, raising significant concerns about its environmental management policies.

Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh sharply critiqued the administration, suggesting that whenever India performs poorly on international rankings, the default response from the government and its supporters is to dismiss these indices as biased.

The question posed by Ramesh now is whether there will be an attempt to undermine the credibility of Israel's Ben Gurion University, which co-developed the index. As India hovers just above nations like Turkey and Iraq, this ranking may pressure the government toward more robust conservation strategies.

(With inputs from agencies.)