India’s phenomenal economic growth over the last decade has been accompanied by a much-needed expansion and improvement in transport and other infrastructure networks. While there are legally mandated assessments of the potential ecological impacts of such infrastructure projects prior to implementation, rarely are there post-implementation assessments of their real ecological impacts.

India's heritage of natural habitats and wild species is under growing threat from its biomass-dependent rural peoples and its consumeristic urban economy. As the mainstay of its wildlife conservation effort, then, India's wildlife reserves continue to face a range of extractive uses.