Lok Sabha Question No. 4383 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-08-20
Subject: National Mission for Sustaining the Himalayan Ecosystem
Ministry: SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
Asked by: Shri Mukeshkumar Chandrakaant Dalal

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

## DEPARTMENT OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4383 ANSWERED ON 20/08/2025

## NATIONAL MISSION FOR SUSTAINING THE HIMALAYAN ECOSYSTEM

## 4383. SHRI MUKESHKUMAR CHANDRAKAANT DALAL:

Will the Minister of SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY be pleased to state:

- (a) the details of the total budget allocation for National Mission for Sustaining the Himalayan Ecosystem (NMSHE) since July 2018, year and State-wise;
- (b) the details of the research programmes initiated under NMSHE since its inception  to  study  the  Himalayan  ecosystem  of  the  Surat  region  and  its vulnerabilities  to  climate  change  and  the  progress  achieved  through  these research programmes so far;
- the  mechanisms  to  ensure  the  effective  implementation  of  NMSHE
- (c) considering its ecological significance and challenges;
- (d) the  details  of  the  specific  steps  being  taken  to  study  and  mitigate  the impact of climate-induced natural disasters, such as landslides and soil erosion;
- and
- (e) whether the Government has any plans to expand the scope of NMSHE to address emerging challenges such as urbanization and tourism pressure, if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) OF THE MINISTRY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY AND EARTH SCIENCES (DR. JITENDRA SINGH)

विज्ञान और प्रौद्योगिकी तथा पृ थ्िी विज्ञान मंत्रालय क े राज्य मंत्री ( स्ितंत्र प्रभार) ( डॉ. जितेंद्र स ंह )

- (a) The  Department  of  Science  and  Technology  (DST)  is  implementing  two National  Missions  on  Climate  Change viz.  National  Mission  for  Sustaining  the Himalayan Ecosystem (NMSHE) and National Mission on Strategic Knowledge for Climate  Change  (NMSKCC)  from  its  internal  budget  allocation.  There  is  no

separate  allocation  for  the  National  Mission  for  Sustaining  the  Himalayan Ecosystem (NMSHE); however,  a  total  amount  of  Rs.  111.63  Crores  has  been sanctioned under NMSHE since July 2018 to implement various activities. The year and state-wise budget sanctioned under NMSHE is given below:

| Sl. No.     | States/UTs        | Amount in Crores 2018- 19   | Amount in Crores 2019- 20   | Amount in Crores 2020- 21   | Amount in Crores 2021- 22   | Amount in Crores 2022- 23   | Amount in Crores 2023- 24   | Amount in Crores 2024- 25   | Total Amount in Crores   |
|-------------|-------------------|-----------------------------|-----------------------------|-----------------------------|-----------------------------|-----------------------------|-----------------------------|-----------------------------|--------------------------|
| 1           | Arunachal Pradesh | 3.60 2.46                   | -                           |                             | - 2.57                      | 1.17                        | -                           | 9.80                        |                          |
| 2           | Assam             | 3.04                        | 9.04                        | -                           | -                           | -                           | -                           | -                           | 12.08                    |
| 3           | Delhi             | 0.52                        | -                           | 9.52                        | -                           | -                           | -                           | -                           | 10.04                    |
| 4           | Haryana           | -                           | -                           | -                           | -                           | 1.55                        | -                           | -                           | 1.55                     |
| 5           | Himachal Pradesh  | 1.91                        | 0.80                        | 2.81                        | 1.12                        | -                           | -                           | -                           | 6.64                     |
| 6           | Jammu and Kashmir | 1.88                        | 7.85                        | -                           | -                           | 2.74                        | 0.73                        | -                           | 13.20                    |
| 7           | Karnataka         | 0.41                        | -                           | -                           | -                           | -                           | -                           | -                           | 0.41                     |
| 8           | Ladakh            |                             | -                           | -                           | 2.71                        |                             | 2.68                        |                             | 5.39                     |
| 9           | Manipur           | 1.18                        | -                           | 2.14                        | -                           | -                           | -                           | -                           | 3.32                     |
| 10          | Meghalaya         | 1.29                        | -                           |                             | -                           | 2.13                        |                             | -                           | 3.42                     |
| 11          | Mizoram           |                             | 8.09                        | 2.40                        | -                           | -                           | -                           | -                           | 10.49                    |
| 12 Nagaland | -                 |                             | -                           | -                           | -                           | -                           | 2.51                        | -                           | 2.51                     |
| 13          | Sikkim            |                             | 6.80                        | 1.49                        | -                           | -                           | -                           | -                           | 8.29                     |
| 14          | Tripura           | 1.49                        |                             |                             | -                           | -                           | -                           | -                           | 1.49                     |
| 15          | Uttarakhand 0.75  |                             | 2.06                        | 16.13                       | -                           | -                           | -                           | 1.55                        | 20.49                    |
| 16          | West Bengal       | -                           | -                           | -                           | -                           | 2.51                        | -                           | -                           | 2.51                     |
|             | Total             | 14.58                       | 38.59                       | 34.49                       | 3.83                        | 11.50                       | 7.09                        | 1.55                        | 111.63                   |

- (b) Under NMSHE, vulnerability assessment was conducted for the Himalayan States, which was further expanded to a pan-India study for the assessment of vulnerability and risk at the district level to assess flood and drought risk covering 698 districts, including the Surat region. The results indicate that Surat is at high risk  for  flooding,  ranking  97 th   among  all  the  districts.  Further,  DST  has  also established/strengthened State Climate Change Cells (SCCCs) in 13 Himalayan States/UTs under NMSHE, which are mandated to conduct vulnerability and risk assessment at the district level and assist State Governments in the implementation of their State Action Plans.

- (c) Considering the ecological significance of the Himalayan Ecosystem, the Department has constituted a 'National Expert Committee (NEC)', comprising a cross-section of key stakeholders, which includes reputed climate scientists from academia and research organizations and representatives of relevant ministries. The NEC meets at regular intervals to review and assess the implementation of various research programmes supported under NMSHE.  Additionally, the Department also facilitates visits of experts for field-level review of projects. DST also  conducts  workshops  for  the  dissemination  of  scientific  outcomes  of supported projects to relevant stakeholders.
- (d) To study and mitigate the impact of climate-induced natural disasters, such as landslides and soil erosion, the Department has recently established a Centre of Excellence (CoE) at the Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee, which focuses in the area of disaster risk reduction, sustainability, and adaptation strategies. In addition,  DST  has  a  dedicated Autonomous  Institute, Wadia  Institute of Himalayan Geology (WIHG), Dehradun, which undertakes scientific research and activities related to geohazards (earthquakes, landslides), glaciology, georesources, etc.
- (e) With a view to address emerging challenges such as urbanization, DST has supported  a  National  Network  Programme  on  urban  climate  and  recently announced a special call on 'Urban Climate Research and Extreme Events' to scientifically understand different aspects of urban climate in changing scenario. The Ministry of Forest, Environment and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has notified 'Ecotourism  guidelines  in  and  around  protected  areas'  in  2021.  Further,  the Ministry of Tourism (MoT) has also formulated a 'National Strategy for Sustainable Tourism', which focuses on environmental sustainability, protecting biodiversity, and promoting economic and socio-cultural sustainability.

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