ABSTRACT
A genuine ecological recovery can succeed only through a break with the general trends. The Himalayas and the Tibetan Plateau are one of the most ecologically diverse and vulnerable regions of the earth. The region has witnessed enormous changes, which have made a deep impact on the ecology and climate of the region and have shaped the course of socio-economic development there. The wetlands in the eastern Himalayas have received little appreciation from scientists and policymakers in regard to their role in flood control and maintenance of hydrological regimes. The sacred groves in the eastern Himalayan region are traditionally managed as private or community forests. Despite the fact that the eastern Himalayas are relatively less discussed from an ecological perspective, its rich biodiversity is globally recognised. As human interventions in the environment became more and more significant, hitherto existing patterns of land cover, concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere and allocations of freshwater were decisively altered.
