Valparai is a sleepy town in the Anamalai range of the Western Ghats. Long time ago, the place was a dense tropical forest housing a diverse group of wildlife and native trees. Now vast tracts of these forests have been cleared to make way for tea. In contrast to the earlier biodiversity, Valparai now has only one type of flora-Camellia sinensis, also known as Tea. There are stumps of the non-native Silver Oak dotting the estates to give shade to the tea plants. Wild elephants, having had their habitat denuded, often enter the tea gardens.
Neat rows of tea plants are attended by female workers.
The endangered Nilgiri Tahr is sometimes seen by the roadside. It is a sign of hope after driving trough miles and miles of tea estates.
