Current Context : Environmentalists have raised concerns over unregulated tourism and construction in Odisha’s Mahendragiri Hills, threatening its biodiversity despite its Biodiversity Heritage Site status since 2022.

ABOUT Mahendragiri Hills

• Location: Gajapati district, Odisha; part of Eastern Ghats.
• Declared as: Biodiversity Heritage Site in 2022.
• Elevation: 1,501 metres above sea level.
• Tribal Communities: Home to Saora (Saura) and Kondh tribes.
• Biodiversity: 1,348 plant species, 388 animal species (many endemic & threatened).
• Rivers: Mahendra Tanaya originates here.
• Vegetation: Tropical dry & wet deciduous forests.
• Pilgrimage: Famous for Panchpandava temples.
• Geology: Granite, charnokite, khondalite rocks with quartz intrusions.