India, April 30 -- High above the plains of central Kerala, where the districts of Idukki, Kottayam and Pathanamthitta meet, the hills of Vagamon rise in gentle undulations that have long defined one of the state's most distinctive landscapes.

Wide stretches of grasslands roll across the plateau, broken only by shola patches and the occasional plantation, while pine groves stand in quiet symmetry against a sky that is often wrapped in drifting mist.

For decades, this highland ecosystem has been valued not only for its beauty but for its ecological balance, where openness itself was a defining feature and the land functioned as a living system that absorbed, stored and released water with remarkable efficiency. Today, that balance is und...