India, Nov. 9 -- The Western Ghats, one of India's most ecologically fragile regions, faces mounting climate threats, including a 1,000% rise in floods and frequent droughts.

Despite these risks, the proposed Ecologically Sensitive Area (ESA) remains unnotified, leaving the region vulnerable to human activities and climate change impacts.

Nearly a quarter of India's recorded landslides have occurred in the proposed Western Ghats ecologically sensitive area (WGESA). Floods, too, have become far more frequent in the region: their incidence has risen by 1,000 per cent over five decades, compared with a 410 per cent increase across the rest of the country. Droughts are also declared more frequently in these districts than elsewhere in India...