India Designates 5 New Ramsar Sites

Syllabus: General Studies Paper 3

India has designated five (5) new wetlands of International importance, which include 

• Three wetlands (Karikili Bird Sanctuary, Pallikaranai Marsh Reserve Forest & Pichavaram Mangrove) in Tamil Nadu, 
• One (Pala wetland) in Mizoram
• One wetland (Sakhya Sagar) in Madhya Pradesh, making a total of 54 Ramsar sites in the country.  

The Ramsar sites have been increased from 49 to 54 Ramsar sites.

What is a Wetland?

• Wetlands are areas where water covers the soil, or is present either at or near the surface of the soil all year or for varying periods of time during the year, including during the growing season. 
• Water saturation (hydrology) largely determines how the soil develops and the types of plant and animal communities living in and on the soil.
• Wetlands may support both aquatic and terrestrial species. 
• The prolonged presence of water creates conditions that favor the growth of specially adapted plants (hydrophytes) and promote the development of characteristic wetland (hydric) soils.

Wetland in India

• The convention entered into force in India on 1 February 1982.
• India currently has 54 sites designated as Wetlands of International Importance (Ramsar Sites), with a surface area of 1,098,518 hectares.
• The National Wetland Inventory and Assessment compiled by the Indian Space Research Organisation, estimates India’s wetlands to span around 1,52,600 square kilometres which is 4.63% of the total geographical area of the country.
• India has 19 types of wetlands whereas Gujarat has the maximum area followed by Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.
• Wetlands in Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat serve as important spaces for migratory birds.