DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS - 9 SEPTEMBER 2019

IMPORTANT TOPICS FOR TODAY

BY SUMIT BHARDWAJ 9 September 2019

1.Chandrayaan 2 orbiter ‘sights’ Vikram lander on moon(GS-3)

The last image of Vikram relayed at ISRO’s communication centre just before the agency announced that communication was lost with the lander. Photo: YouTube/ISRO Official

CONTEXT:The lander was spotted some distance away — possibly about half a kilometre — from its intended touchdown point, reports said.
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has retrieved images and located the lander Vikram on the moon on September 8 and is analysing them for a clear picture of the lander’s condition, it is learnt.
At 1.45 a.m. on September 7, 12 minutes into its descent onto the lunar surface, the lander lost contact with earth. It is believed to have deviated from its path, fallen silent, and probably crashed on moon.
The pictures are among the early images sent later in the day by the main Chandrayaan 2 spacecraft, which continues to orbit the moon from pole to pole from a 100-km distance. The lander was spotted some distance away — possibly about half a kilometre — from its intended touchdown point, reports said.
The originally chosen region was s about 70° south of the lunar equator and about 600 km from the lunar south pole.
The orbiter is fitted with a fine Orbiter High Resolution Camera of 30-cm resolution. A Terrain Mapping Camera-2 is another imager put among the orbiter's eight payloads.

QUICK REVISION :CHANDRAYAAN 2

In September 2008, the Chandrayaan-2 mission was approved by the government for a cost of Rs 425 crore.
It is India’s second mission to the moon.
It aims to explore the Moon’s south polar region.
The mission is an important step in India’s plans for planetary exploration, a program known as Planetary Science and Exploration (PLANEX).
There are three components of the mission, an orbiter, a lander and a rover.
The mission payloads include — Terrain Mapping Camera which will generate a Digital Elevation Model (DEM) of the entire moon, Chandrayaan 2 Large Area Soft X-ray Spectrometer which will test the elemental composition of the Moon’s surface Solar X-Ray Monitor which will provide solar X-ray spectrum inputs for CLASS.
The orbiter will be deployed at an altitude of 100 kilometers above the surface of the Moon. The lander will then separate from the orbiter, and execute a soft landing on the surface of the Moon, unlike the previous mission which crash landed near the lunar south pole.
The lander, rover and orbiter will perform mineralogical and elemental studies of the lunar surface.
The rover is named Pragyan.
The mission’s lander is named Vikram after Dr Vikram A Sarabhai, the Father of the Indian Space Programme.

GSLV Mk-III:

Developed by ISRO, the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark-III is a three-stage vehicle.
Primarily designed to launch communication satellites into geostationary orbit.
It has a mass of 640 tonnes that can accommodate up to 8,000 kg payload to LEO and 4000 kg payload to GTO.
GSLV Mk-III vehicle is powered by two solid motor strap-ons (S200), a liquid propellant core stage (L110) and a cryogenic stage (C25), that has been designed for carrying the four-tonne class satellites.
The C25 is powered by CE-20, India’s largest cryogenic engine, designed and developed by the Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre.

Why the south polar region of the moon?

According to ISRO, the lunar south pole is an interesting surface area, which remains in shadow as compared to the north pole. There is a possibility of the presence of water in permanently shadowed areas around it, the agency said, adding craters in the south pole region have cold traps and contain fossil records of the early solar system.

The challenges along the way:

Challenges involved in the moon landing are identifying trajectory accurately; taking up deep space communication; trans-lunar injection, orbiting around the moon, taking up soft landing on the moon surface, and facing extreme temperatures and vacuum.

The dream run of India’s ambitious second lunar mission, Chandrayaan 2 ended in a tragedy early on September 7 as the Indian Space Research Organisation lost contact with the spacecraft’s lander Vikram.
The mission was launched on July 22 by India’s most powerful rocket GSLV MkIII-M1.

2.Typhoon Faxai hits Tokyo(GS-1,3)

CONTEXT:A powerful typhoon with potentially record winds and rain battered the Tokyo region early Monday, sparking evacuation warnings to tens of thousands, widespread blackouts and transport disruption.

Typhoon Faxai, packing winds of up to 216 kilometres (134 miles) per hour, made landfall in Chiba just east of the capital before dawn, after barrelling through Tokyo Bay.

About 5,000 people in Chiba and Kanagawa prefectures were ordered to evacuate, public broadcaster NHK reported on its Twitter feed.

The name Faxai has been used to name four tropical cyclones in the northwestern Pacific Ocean. The name was contributed by Laos and is a woman's given name in a language spoken there.

The season's fifth major typhoon and is expected to be the strongest storm to hit Japan in 60 years.

WHAT ARE TYPHOONS?

Tropical Cyclones

Tropical cyclones are regarded as one of the most devastating natural calamities in the world.

They originate and intensify over warm tropical oceans.

These are ferocious storms that originate over oceans in tropical areas and move over to the coastal areas causing violent winds, very heavy rainfall, and storm outpourings.

Names of cyclone in different regions

They are known as:

Cyclones in the Indian Ocean

Hurricanes in the Atlantic

Typhoons in the Western Pacific and the South China Sea

Willy-willies in Western Australia

Conditions for the formation of Tropical Cyclone

The conditions which favour the formation and intensification of tropical cyclone storms are:

Large sea surface with a temperature higher than 27° C

Presence of the Coriolis force

Small differences in the vertical wind speed

A pre-existing weak- low-pressure area or low-level-cyclonic circulation

Upper divergence above the sea level system

Formation of Cyclone

The energy that strengthens the storm comes from the condensation process in the towering cumulonimbus clouds, surrounding the centre of the storm.

With an uninterrupted supply of moisture from the sea, the storm is again strengthened.

On reaching the terrestrial region the moisture supply is cut off and the storm dissipates.

The place where a tropical cyclone cuts the coast is called the landfall of the cyclone.

A landfall is frequently accompanied by sturdy winds, heavy rain and mounting sea waves that could threaten people and cause damage to properties.

Cyclones which cross 20 degrees North latitude are more destructive.

They cover a larger area and can originate over the land and sea whereas the tropical cyclones originate only over the seas and on reaching the land they dissipate.

Eye of Cyclone

A mature tropical cyclone is characterised by the strong spirally circulating wind around the centre which is called the eye.

The eye is an area with calm weather descending air.

It is characterized by light winds and clear skies.

Eye Wall

Around the eye is the eyewall, where there is a strong spiralling rise of air to a greater height reaching the tropopause.

The wind reaches maximum velocity in this region and torrential rain occurs here.

From the eyewall, rain bands may radiate and trains of cumulus and cumulonimbus clouds may drift into the outer region.

3.Chinese trawlers in southern Indian Ocean worry India(GS-1,2)

CONTEXT:There has been a huge increase in Chinese deep-sea fishing trawlers in the southern Indian Ocean far from the Chinese coast which has raised concerns in the government and the security establishment, according to official sources. This was discussed in the recent coastal security meetings involving Director-General (DG), Shipping, the Navy and other stakeholders.

The trawlers were, however, not in India’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) but beyond, the source added. This includes trawlers from China, Hong Kong and Taiwan.

Breaking this up further, there were 1,100 occurrences near Somalia and 1,500 occurrences near the Coast of Oman. Occurrences are recordings of the Automatic Identification System (AIS) aboard trawlers and ships recorded when they are activated.

The maritime movements in the region are tracked at the Navy’s Information Management and Analysis Centre (IMAC) at Gurugram, which is the single-point centre interlinking all the coastal radar chains and other inputs along the coastline. The AIS information comprises name, MMSI number, position, course, speed, last port visited, destination and so on. This information can be picked up through various AIS sensors including coastal AIS chains and satellite based receivers.

To address this, the National Maritime Domain Awareness initiative aims to integrate fishing, ports, customs so that the database is available to everyone. Currently, the States have their databases. As part of this evolving mechanism, the National Committee for Strengthening Maritime and Coastal Security is scheduled to meet this week to discuss the implementation.

There has been a national effort to install AIS systems on ships under 20m for which a pilot study has been carried out. AIS works through satellite and the ISRO has already delivered 1000 transponders for trails in Gujarat and Tamil Nadu

UNDERSTANDING Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ):

An Exclusive Economic Zone or EEZ is a zone in the sea approved by the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. Over this zone, a nation-state has exclusive special rights for exploring and using the marine resources. This right is also extended to production of energy from wind and water. It extends from the baseline to two hundred nautical miles from the coast of the concerned country. In colloquial practice, the term can also contain the continental shelf. Generally, a state’s exclusive right extends up to 200 nautical miles but there are exceptions to this rule such as whenever exclusive economic zones overlap, i.e., the baselines of the state coasts are under 400 nautical miles apart.

The continental shelf or the territorial sea over 200 nautical miles is not included in this term. In a territorial sea, the state has complete sovereignty or authority over it. But in case of EEZ, a “sovereign right” is conferred to the state’s rights below sea waters. The surface waters are international waters.

The automatic identification system (AIS) is an automatic tracking system that uses transponders on ships and is used by vessel traffic services (VTS). When satellites are used to detect AIS signatures, the term Satellite-AIS (S-AIS) is used. AIS information supplements marine radar, which continues to be the primary method of collision avoidance for water transport

Key facts about Information Management and Analysis Centre (IMAC)

IMAC IS the single point centre interlinking the newly formed coastal radar chain of India. It will be manned by the Navy and function under the National Security Adviser (NSA).

It is the nodal centre of the National Command Control Communications and Intelligence Network (NC3I Network) and National Maritime Domain Awareness (NMDA).

The NC3I will link 20 naval and 31 Coast Guard monitoring stations with IMAC to generate a real-time picture of the nearly 7,500-km long coastline. The system currently comprises 46 radars and 30 additional radars are planned to fill all the gaps in coastline security.

In this system the remote hubs are linked with the centre by high speed optical fibre networks and satellite links- for backup in case of emergency.

Apart from coastal radars and optical sensors, it also draws information from automatic identification systems fitted on merchant ships and has a comprehensive shipping database of world registers of shipping for analysis of traffic.

The software on which the coastal surveillance will be carried out incorporates hi-tech features like data fusion, correlation and decision support features thus facilitating better decision making.

Thus, Information Management and Analysis Centre (IMAC) project would go a long way in beefing up the maritime surveillance, thereby, enhancing the National Maritime Domain Awareness Project.

4.Who are the Sentinelese?(GS-1)

CONTEXT:Study sheds more light on killing of American by the Sentinelese
Almost nine months after American national John Allen Chau was allegedly killed by the Sentinelese on the North Sentinel Island of Andaman and Nicobar islands, a recent publication by the Anthropological Survey of India (AnSI) throws more light on the incident and also the ways of one of the most isolated tribes in the world.

Who are the Sentinelese?

The Sentinelese are a negrito tribe who live on the North Sentinel Island of the Andamans. The inhabitants are connected to the Jarawa on the basis of physical, as well as linguistic similarities. Their numbers are believed to be less than 150 and as low as 40.
Based on carbon dating of kitchen middens by the Anthropological Survey of India, Sentinelese presence was confirmed in the islands to 2,000 years ago. Genome studies indicate that the Andaman tribes could have been on the islands even 30,000 years ago

Why are they said to be vulnerable?

It is said they have made little to no advancement in the over 60,000 years and still live very primitive lives, surviving mainly on fish and coconuts.
They are very vulnerable to germs since they have not had contact with the outside world. Even a common flu virus carried by a visitor could wipe out the entire tribe.
Since the 1960s, there have been a handful of efforts to reach out to the tribe but all have largely failed. They have repeatedly, aggressively made it clear that they want to be isolated.

Steps taken to ensure the protection of Sentinelese:

The entire North Sentinel Island along with 5 km coastal sea from high water mark is notified as tribal reserve.
The Government respects their way of life style, therefore, has adopted an ‘eyes-on and hands-off’ practice to protect and safeguard the Sentinelese tribe.
A protocol of circumnavigation of the North Sentinel Island has been notified. The ships and aircrafts of Coast Guard and boats of Marine Police make sorties around North Sentinel to keep surveillance.

They have been protected under:

A &N Islands (PAT) Regulation 1956.
Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989.
Restrictions under Foreigner (Restricted Area) Orders, 1963.
Visa Manual Conditions/Passport Act 1920, Indian Forest Act, 1927 and Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.

North Sentinel Island

North Sentinel Island Is one of the Andaman Islands, an archipelago in the Bay of Bengal which also includes South Sentinel Island.It is home to the Sentinelese, a tribe who have rejected, often violently, any contact with the outside world. They are among the last uncontacted people to remain virtually untouched by modern civilization.
The Andaman and Nicobar Islands Protection of Aboriginal Tribes Act of 1956 prohibits travel to the island and any approach closer than five nautical miles (9.26 km) in order to prevent the resident tribespeople from contracting diseases to which they have no immunity. The area is patrolled by the Indian navy.
Nominally, the island belongs to the South Andaman administrative district, part of the Indian union territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands. In practice, Indian authorities recognise the islanders' desire to be left alone and restrict their role to remote monitoring; they do not prosecute them for killing people. The island is in effect a sovereign area under Indian protection. In 2018, the Government of India excluded 29 islands – including North Sentinel – from the Restricted Area Permit (RAP) regime, until 31 December 2022, in a major effort to boost tourism. In November 2018, however, the government's home ministry stated that the relaxation of the prohibition was intended only to allow researchers and anthropologists, with pre-approved clearance, to visit the Sentinel islands.
The Sentinelese have repeatedly attacked approaching vessels. This resulted in the deaths of two fishermen in 2006 and an American missionary, John Allen Chau, in 2018.

5.Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh to have a common high court(GS-2)

CONTEXT:The Union Territories of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh will have a common high court, State Judicial Academy’s Director Rajeev Gupta said on September 8.

He also said 108 Central laws would be applicable for the two UTs while 164 State laws would be repealed and 166 State laws will continue to be applicable.

The Centre on August 5 nullified Article 370 of the Constitution, revoking the special status of the state.

Parliament approved the resolution in this regard and also passed the bill on the bifurcation of the State into two UTs.

Later on August 9, President Ram Nath Kovind gave assent to the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019, bifurcating the two Union Territories, which will come into existence on October 31.

Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019:

The Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019 is an act of the Parliament of India. It contains provisions to reconstitute the state of Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories, one to be eponymously called Jammu and Kashmir, and the other Ladakh. The act will come into effect on 31 October 2019. A bill for the act was introduced by the Minister of Home Affairs Amit Shah in the Rajya Sabha, on 5 August 2019. The bill was passed in Rajya Sabha the same day and was passed by the Lok Sabha on 6 August 2019. It received the President's assent on 9 August 2019.

The introduction of the bill was preceded by a presidential order under Article 370 of the Indian constitution that revoked Jammu and Kashmir's special status, and mandating, inter alia, that all the provisions of the Indian Constitution would be applicable to Jammu and Kashmir. This enabled the parliament to enact the legislation.

WHAT WAS ARICLE 370?

Present in part XXI of the Indian Constitution which comprises of Temporary, Transitional and Special Provisions with rest to various states of India.

Forms the basis of the “Special Status” of J&K.

Provides for a separate Constitution of J&K.

Limits the Union Parliament’s power to make laws for J&K to those subjects mentioned in the Instrument of Accession (defense, foreign affairs, and communications) and others as and when declared by the Presidential Orders with the concurrence of the Government of the State.

Specified the mechanism by which the Article shall cease to be operative. That is, on the recommendation of the Constituent Assembly of the State before the President issues such a notification. However, this provision has been amended by the Constitution (Application to Jammu and Kashmir) Order, 2019.

Was it Temporary

The Article was introduced to accommodate the apprehensions of Maharaja Hari Singh who would not have acceded to India without certain concessions.

Territorial integrity was of paramount importance to India post-independence, thus, such a special provision was inducted in the constitution.

The provision, however, is part of the “Temporary, Transitional and Special Provisions” of our constitution.

Moreover, Article 370 could be interpreted as temporary in the sense that the J&K Constituent Assembly had a right to modify/delete/retain it; it decided to retain it.

Another interpretation was that accession was temporary until a plebiscite.

Issues in Revoking

Article 370 is the bedrock of the constitutional relationship between Jammu and Kashmir and the rest of India.

It has been described as a tunnel through which the Constitution is applied to J&K.

India has used Article 370 at least 45 times to extend provisions of the Indian Constitution to J&K. This is the only way through which, by mere Presidential Orders, India has almost nullified the effect of J&K’s special status.

By the 1954 order, almost the entire Constitution was extended to J&K including most Constitutional amendments.

However, abrogating the article altogether may threaten the peace in the state which is already a hotspot of conflicts and militancy.

It will completely change the relationship between the state and the rest of India.

It will also clear the path for abrogating Article 35A which would allow Indian citizens to purchase land and settle permanently in J&K.

Thus, the move is bound to have a significant impact on the demography, culture, and politics of J&K.

6.Article 371 won’t be diluted, Amit Shah assures northeastern States

(GS-2)

CONTEXT:Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday assured the northeastern States that the Centre would never touch Article 371 of the Constitution that grants special provisions to the region.
Mr. Shah, also the chairman of the North Eastern Council (NEC), gave the assurance in his inaugural address at the 68th plenary session of the NEC here. The meeting was attended by the Governors, the Chief Ministers and officials of eight northeastern States. “The withdrawal of Article 370 from Jammu and Kashmir was criticised. Everyone can do so in a democratic country, but it was used to misinform and misguide the people of the northeast about Article 371,” Mr. Shah said.

Article 371 :

Article 371 of the Constitution includes “special provisions” for 11 states, including six states of the Northeast.
Articles 370 and 371 were part of the Constitution at the time of its commencement on January 26, 1950; Articles 371A through 371J were incorporated subsequently.

Overview:

Article 371, Maharashtra and Gujarat:
Governor has “special responsibility” to establish “separate development boards” for “Vidarbha, Marathwada, and the rest of Maharashtra”, and Saurashtra and Kutch in Gujarat; ensure “equitable allocation of funds for developmental expenditure over the said areas”, and “equitable arrangement providing adequate facilities for technical education and vocational training, and adequate opportunities for employment” under the state government.

Article 371A (13th Amendment Act, 1962), Nagaland:

Inserted after a 16-point agreement between the Centre and the Naga People’s Convention in 1960, which led to the creation of Nagaland in 1963.

Parliament cannot legislate in matters of Naga religion or social practices, Naga customary law and procedure, administration of civil and criminal justice involving decisions according to Naga customary law, and ownership and transfer of land without concurrence of the state Assembly.

Article 371B (22nd Amendment Act, 1969), Assam:

The President may provide for the constitution and functions of a committee of the Assembly consisting of members elected from the state’s tribal areas.

Article 371C (27th Amendment Act, 1971), Manipur:

The President may provide for the constitution of a committee of elected members from the Hill areas in the Assembly, and entrust “special responsibility” to the Governor to ensure its proper functioning.

Article 371D (32nd Amendment Act, 1973; substituted by The Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014), Andhra Pradesh and Telangana:

President must ensure “equitable opportunities and facilities” in “public employment and education to people from different parts of the state”. He may require the state government to organise “any class or classes of posts in a civil service of, or any class or classes of civil posts under, the State into different local cadres for different parts of the State”. He has similar powers vis-à-vis admissions in educational institutions

Article 371E:

Allows for the establishment of a university in Andhra Pradesh by a law of Parliament. But this is not a “special provision” in the sense of the others in this part.

Article 371F (36th Amendment Act, 1975), Sikkim:

The members of the Legislative Assembly of Sikkim shall elect the representative of Sikkim in the House of the People. To protect the rights and interests of various sections of the population of Sikkim, Parliament may provide for the number of seats in the Assembly, which may be filled only by candidates from those sections.

Article 371G (53rd Amendment Act, 1986), Mizoram:

Parliament cannot make laws on “religious or social practices of the Mizos, Mizo customary law and procedure, administration of civil and criminal justice involving decisions according to Mizo customary law, ownership and transfer of land… unless the Assembly… so decides”.

Article 371H (55th Amendment Act, 1986), Arunachal Pradesh:

The Governor has a special responsibility with regard to law and order, and “he shall, after consulting the Council of Ministers, exercise his individual judgment as to the action to be taken”.

Article 371J (98th Amendment Act, 2012), Karnataka:

There is a provision for a separate development board for the Hyderabad-Karnataka region. There shall be “equitable allocation of funds for developmental expenditure over the said region”, and “equitable opportunities and facilities” for people of this region in government jobs and education. A proportion of seats in educational institutions and state government jobs in Hyderabad-Karnataka can be reserved for individuals from that region.

Article 371I deals with Goa, but it does not include any provision that can be deemed ‘special’.

Significance:

All these provisions take into account the special circumstances of individual states, and lay down a wide range of specific safeguards that are deemed important for these states.

In these range of Articles from 371 to 371J, Article 371I, which deals with Goa, stands out in the sense that it does not include any provision that can be deemed “special”. Article 371E, which deals with Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, too, is not that “special”.

North Eastern Council (NEC):
About NEC:

NEC was established under the North Eastern Council Act, 1971as an apex level body for securing balanced and coordinated development and facilitating coordination with the States.

Subsequent to the Amendment of 2002, NEC has been mandated to function as a regional planning body for the North Eastern Area and while formulating a regional plan for this area, shall give priority to the schemes and projects benefiting two or more states provided that in the case of Sikkim, the Council shall formulate specific projects and schemes for that State.

The Union Cabinet, in June 2018, approved the proposal of Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) for the nomination of the Union Home Minister as ex-officio Chairman of North Eastern Council (NEC). The Cabinet also approved that Minister of State (Independent Charge), Ministry of DoNER would serve as Vice Chairman of the Council.

NEC and all the Governors and Chief Ministers of North Eastern States will be Members.

7.Nilgiri tahr’s population up 27% in three years(GS-1,3)

CONTEXT:Numbers in Mukurthi National Park have risen from 568 in 2018 to 612 this year

In more good news for the State animal, the Nilgiri tahr, its sightings in the Mukurthi National Park have risen from 568 in 2018 to 612 this year.

Officials said this was the second consecutive year that an increase in the population of the animal had been recorded in the park, meaning the population of the Nilgiri tahr, also known as the Nilgiri ibex, has risen by 132 since 2016.

According to officials, the almost 8% increase in the population of the iconic animal in 2019 follows a similarly significant increase in its population in 2018. Officials said the upward trend was good news, as the new data reinforced last year’s findings.

The Nilgiri tahr

The Nilgiri tahr (Nilgiritragus hylocrius) known locally as the Nilgiri ibex or simply ibex, is an ungulate that is endemic to the Nilgiri Hills and the southern portion of the Western Ghats in the states of Tamil Nadu and Kerala in Southern India. It is the state animal of Tamil Nadu. Despite its local name, it is more closely related to the sheep of the genus Ovis than the ibex and wild goats of the genus Capra

Nilgiri Hills

Middle section OF WESTERN GHATS…

This section runs through the States of Karnataka and Goa. It terminates in the Nilgiris, where it joins the Eastern Ghats.

Bababudan hills of Karnataka are a part of this section. They are famous for their coffee plantations. River Tungabhadra has one of its originating streams (Bhadra) coming from these hills.

They are made of igneous and metamorphic rocks like the granite and gneiss.

They have dense forests and a number of short streams originate from them. This resulted in a headward erosion of these hills, leaving many gaps in the ranges.

Their average elevation is around 1200m. They include prominent peaks such as the Vavulmala (2339m), Kudremukh (1892m), Pushpagiri (1714m) etc.

Nilgiris are the prominent hills of this section. They rise abruptly at the trijunction of Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala to a height of up to 2000m. The highest hills of Nilgiris are the Ootacamund hills. Doda betta (2630m) is the highest peak in the Nilgiris.

Nilgiris are block mountains, they rose between two faults and are hence considered to be Horst landforms.

Mukurthi National Park

Mukurthi National Park (MNP) is a 78.46 km2 (30.3 sq mi) protected area located in the western corner of the Nilgiris Plateau west of Ootacamund hill station in the northwest corner of Tamil Nadu state in the Western Ghats mountain range of South India. The park was created to protect its keystone species, the Nilgiri tahr.

The park is characterised by montane grasslands and shrublands interspersed with sholas in a high altitude area of high rainfall, near-freezing temperatures and high winds. It is home to an array of endangered wildlife, including royal Bengal tiger and Asian elephant, but its main mammal attraction is the Nilgiri tahr. The park was previously known as Nilgiri Tahr National Park.

The park is a part of Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve, India's first International Biosphere Reserve. As part of the Western Ghats, it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1 July 2012.