Kerala State Biodiversity Board submits policy paper to mitigate threats from invasive species

Lantana camara, an invasive alien species found in forest ecosystems in Keralam.

The Kerala State Biodiversity Board (KSBB) has come up with a seven-point strategic plan to mitigate the impact of invasive alien species (IAS) on the state’s biodiversity.

A policy paper prepared by the council, which was recently submitted to the state government, suggests putting emphasis on preventing and monitoring the spread of invasive alien species and creating public awareness and capacity building to manage the menace.

The document calls for strict quarantine measures; public awareness and capacity building; conducting risk assessments and prioritizing research on the impacts of invasive alien species; invasive alien species management that prioritizes prevention, involvement of local communities; and scientific identification and taxonomic validation, which emphasizes the development of methods to verify the invasiveness of species. The document also suggests the economic use of invasive species in cases where eradication is not feasible.

Invasive fish

A total of 32 alien species, including four plants and 28 fish species, have been documented in the inland aquatic ecosystems of Kerala. The most widespread invasive fish is the Mozambique tilapia, found in all 44 rivers, 18 reservoirs and two lakes, according to the document.

Invasive species in forest ecosystems include species such as Chromolaena odorata, Lantana camara and Mikania micrantha. These species prevent the regeneration of native plant species, leading to ecosystem change and loss of biodiversity, he says.

The document also talks about foreign invasive insect pests, which are a major problem in the state’s agriculture and cause crop damage, among other things. Intentional ways of introducing these species occur through aquaculture, the ornamental plant trade or agriculture, while unintentional ways include ballast water, the nursery trade or natural disasters such as floods, the paper suggests.

He points out that major avenues in Kerala include ballast water, ornamental plant trade and horticulture and agriculture.

KSSB chairman N. Anil Kumar says invasive species have deeply affected the ecosystem by eliminating native species.

“Strong measures required”

“Invasive species are fast-spreading, competitive and have huge implications for ecology and native species. Naturalized biodiversity is disrupted as they spread rapidly and their removal costs a lot. Strict measures need to be taken to prevent the spread of these species,” says Mr. Anil Kumar.

Former director of Kerala Forest Research Institute KV Sankaran proposes an exclusive legal framework to mitigate the threats posed by invasive species.

No study

“The initiative has to come from the Union government. No study has been done to identify native species lost to invasive species,” says Mr. Sankaran, who is also the coordinating lead author of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services.

“A unified government system focused on dealing with invasive species is essential,” he adds.

The recommendation to develop a policy to mitigate the threat of invasive alien species was given to the Ministry of Forests, Environment and Climate Change by the Zoological Survey of India based on discussions during a national conference on invasive species last year, he says.

Published – 12 Oct 2026 05:30 IST