INDIA’S RAMSAR SITES (Syllabus GS Paper 3 – Env and Eco)

Context: The Environment Ministry announced the designation of three additional wetlands in India as 'Ramsar sites,' raising the country's total to 85.

India’s Ramsar Sites

• Percentage of Wetland Area: India's Ramsar wetlands comprise around 10% of the total wetland area in the country.
• States Covered: These wetlands are spread across 18 States in India.
• Ramsar Sites in South Asia: No other South Asian country has as many Ramsar sites as India.
• Global Comparison: The United Kingdom (175) and Mexico (142) have more Ramsar sites than India, despite being smaller countries.
• The three new sites are: The Nanjarayan Bird Sanctuary; the Kazhuveli Bird Sanctuary in Tamil Nadu; and the Tawa Reservoir in Madhya Pradesh.

Ramsar Convention

• About: It is the intergovernmental treaty that provides the framework for the conservation and wise use of wetlands and their resources. 
• Timeline: The Convention was adopted in the Iranian city of Ramsar in 1971 and came into force in 1975. 
• Contracting Parties: Almost 90% of UN member states have become “Contracting Parties” (172). 
• Membership of India: India is a part of the Ramsar Convention and signed in 1982.
• Criteria: To be Ramsar site, however, it must meet at least one of the nine criteria defined by the Ramsar Convention of 1971, including supporting vulnerable, endangered, or

oCritically endangered species 

oThreatened ecological communities; or regularly supports 20,000 or more waterbirds; or

oIt is an important source of food for fishes, spawning ground, nursery and/or migration path on which fish stocks are dependent upon.