Wetlands are areas where water is the primary factor controlling the environment and the

associated plant and animal life. They occur where the water table is at or near the surface of the
land, or where the land is covered by water. Once treated as transitional habitats or seral stages in
succession from open water to land, the wetlands are now considered to be distinct ecosystems
with specific ecological characteristics, functions and values.
According to most widespread definition wetlands are defined as: "lands transitional between
terrestrial and aquatic eco-systems where the water table is usually at or near the surface or the
land is covered by shallow water".
Ramsar Convention on Wetlands define wetlands as: "areas of marsh, fen, peatland or water,
whether natural or artificial, permanent or temporary, with water that is static or flowing, fresh,
brackish or salt, including areas of marine water the depth of which at low tide does not exceed
six metres".
Wetlands, natural and manmade, freshwater or brackish, provide numerous ecological services.
The density of birds, in particular, is an accurate indication of the ecological health of a
particular wetland. However, unsustainable use of wetland without reckoning of their
assimilative capacity constitutes major threat to the conservation and management of these vital
biodiversity rich areas.
1. National Wetland Conservation Programme (NWCP)
Government of India opertionalized National Wetland Conservation Programme (NWCP) in
closed collaboration with concerned State Government during the year 1985/86. Under the
programme 115 wetlands (Table 1) have been identified till now by the Ministry which requires
urgent conservation and management initiatives.
Aim of the Scheme
Conservation and wise use of wetlands in the country so as to prevent their further degradation.
Objectives of the Scheme
The scheme was initiated with the following objectives:

to lay down policy guidelines for conservation and management of wetlands in the
country;
to undertake intensive conservation measures in priority wetlands;
to monitor implementation of the programme; and
to prepare an inventory of Indian wetlands.

Proposed funding pattern under the Scheme

Financial assistance under NWCP is provided for two components i.e. Management Action Plan
(MAP) and Research Projects. Under the Scheme, 100% assistance is provided for activities.
Conservation and management of wetlands is primarily vested with the State/UTs, who are in
physical possession of the area. After identification of wetlands under the Scheme, the State/UTs
are to submit long-term comprehensive Management Action Plans (MAPs) for a period of 3-5
years, preferably 5 years, coinciding with the Plan period.
The State Governments are advised to define objectives taking into consideration factors
responsible for degradation of the wetland. The MAP should also have short-term objectives to
cater to immediate problems confronting wetlands and to go in for immediate rectification
measures. The comprehensive MAP should be based on integrated and multi-disciplinary
approach. These are scrutinized and approved by the Central Government with such changes as
necessary in accordance with the Rules, procedures, and priorities of the particular area and
availability of funds. After the approval of MAP, funds are released annually to the State/UTs as
per Annual Plan of Operation (APOs) submitted to the Central Government.
2. Ramsar Convention on Wetland
The Convention on Wetlands, signed in Ramsar, Iran, in 1971, is an intergovernmental treaty
which provides the framework for national action and international cooperation for the
conservation and wise use of wetlands and their resources. There are presently 158 Contracting
Parties to the Convention, with 1758 wetland sites, totaling 161 million hectares, designated for
inclusion in the Ramsar List of Wetlands of International Importance. Ramsar Convention is the
only global environment treaty dealing with a particular ecosystem.
The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands was developed as a means to call international attention to
the rate at which wetland habitats were disappearing, in part due to a lack of understanding of
their important functions, values, goods and services. Governments that join the Convention are
expressing their willingness to make a commitment to helping to reverse that history of wetland
loss and degradation.
In addition, many wetlands are international systems lying across the boundaries of two or more
countries, or are part of river basins that include more than one country. The health of these and
other wetlands is dependent upon the quality and quantity of the transboundary water supply

from rivers, streams, lakes, or underground aquifers. This requires framework for international
discussion and cooperation toward mutual benefits
Major obligations of countries which are party to the Convention are:

Designate wetlands for inclusion in the List of Wetlands of International Importance.

Promote, as far as possible, the wise use of wetlands in their territory.
Promote international cooperation especially with regard to transboundary wetlands,
shared water systems, and shared species.
Create wetland reserves.

Indian wetlands are grouped as:

(I) Himalayan wetlands:
Ladakh and Zanskar
Pangong Tso, Tso Morad, Chantau, Noorichan, Chushul and Hanlay marshes
Kashmir Valley
Dal, Anchar, Wular, Haigam, Malgam, Haukersar and Kranchu lakes
Central Himalayas
Nainital, Bhimtal and Naukuchital
Eastern Himalayas
Numerous wetlands in Sikkim, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Manipur,
Beels in the Brahmaputra and Barak valley
(II) Indo-Gangetic wetlands:
The Indo-Gangetic flood plain is the largest wetland system in India, extending from the river
Indus in the west to Brahmaputra in the east. This includes the wetlands of the Himalayan terai
and the Indo-Gangetic plains.
(III) Coastal wetlands:
The vast intertidal areas, mangroves and lagoons along the 7500 km long coastline in West
Bengal, Orissa, Andh,ra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Goa, Maharashtra. and
Gujarat. Mangrove forests of Sunderbans, West Bengal and Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
Offshore coral reefs of Gulf of Kutch, Gulf of Mannar, Lakshwadeep and Andaman and Nicobar
Islands.
(IV) Deccan:
A few natural wetlands, but innumerable small and large reservoirs and several water storage
tanks in almost every village in the region.
List of Ramsar sites
(as of April 2015)

Name[3]

Location

Designated Area (km2) Description

Ashtamudi
1
Wetland

Kerala
857N
7635E

19/08/02

614

Bhitarkanika
2
Mangroves

Orissa
2039N
8654E

19/08/02

650

3 Bhoj Wetland

Madhya
Pradesh
2314N
7720E

19/08/02

32

4 Chandra Taal

Himachal
Pradesh
3229N
7736E

08/11/05

.49

5 Chilika Lake

Orissa

01/10/81

1165

6 Deepor Beel

Assam

19/08/02

40

East
Calcutta
West Bengal 19/08/02
Wetlands

8 Harike Wetland Punjab

9 Hokera Wetland

23/03/90

Jammu and
08/11/05
Kashmir

10 Kanjli Wetland Punjab

22/01/02

125
41
13.75
1.83

A natural backwater
in Kollam district.
River Kallada and
Pallichal drains into
it. It forms an estuary
with
Sea
at
Neendakara which is
a famous fishing
harbour in Kerala.
National Waterway 3
passes through it.
Most
tastiest
stiest
backwater fish in
kerala , the Karimeen
of kanjiracode Kayal
is from Ashtamudi
Lake.

Image

Name[3]

Location

Designated Area (km2) Description

Keoladeo
National Park

Rajasthan

01/10/81

28.73

12 Kolleru Lake

Andhra
Pradesh

19/08/02

901

13 Loktak Lake

Manipur

23/03/90

266

24/09/12

123

Point Calimere
and Tamil Nadu 19/08/02
15 Wildlife
Bird Sanctuary

385

11

14

Nalsarovar Bird
Gujarat
Sanctuary

16 Pong Dam Lake

Himachal
Pradesh

19/08/02

156.62

17 Renuka Lake

Himachal
Pradesh

08/11/05

.2

18 Ropar_Wetland Punjab

19

Rudrasagar
Lake

20 Sambhar Lake

21

Sasthamkotta
Lake

22/01/02

13.65

Tripura

08/11/05

2.4

Rajasthan

23/03/90

240

Kerala

19/08/02

3.73

A
humanmade
wetland of lake and
river formed by the
1952 construction of
a
barrage
for
diversion of water
from
the
Sutlej
[4]
River

It is the largest
freshwater lake in
Kerala, situated in
Kollam
district.
River Kallada had a
unique replenishing
system through a bar
of paddy field which
has now disappeared
due to indiscriminate
sand
and
clay
mining. The lake is

Image

Name[3]

Location

Designated Area (km2) Description

now depleting due to
destruction
of
replenishing
mechanism.

22

SurinsarMansar Lakes

23 Tsomoriri

Jammu and
08/11/05
Kashmir

Jammu and
19/08/02
Kashmir

Upper Ganga
River (Brijghat Uttar
24
to
Narora Pradesh
Stretch)

25

Vembanad-Kol
Kerala
Wetland

08/11/05

19/08/02

3.5

120

Largest of the high

altitude lakes in the
Trans-Himalayan
biogeographic
region, the lake is
oligotrophic
with
alkaline water.

265.9

1512.5

Largest
lake
of
Kerala,
spanning
across Alappuzha ,
Kottayam
,
and
Ernakulam districts.
Famous
tourist
locations
like
Alappuzha
and
Kumarakom, known
for house boats falls
here. River mouths
of
PambaAchenkovil rivers in
Vembanad forms one
of
the
unique
wetland topography
of
Kerala,
the
Kuttanad. It is below
sea level and is
famous for exotic
fish varieties and

Image

Name[3]

Location

Designated Area (km2) Description

Image

Paddy fields that are

below sea level.
26 Wular Lake

Jammu and
23/03/90
Kashmir

189

United Arab Emirates to host next Ramsar COP13 in 2018

Punta del Este, Uruguay |9 June 2015- The United Arab Emirates was officially accepted as the
host for the 13th Meeting of the Conference of the Contracting Parties to the Ramsar Convention
on Wetlands (COP13) to take place in Dubai in 2018.
The announcement was made on 8th June 2015 during a plenary session attended by over 800
delegates from 160 countries meeting in Uruguay, who are attending the 12th Conference of the
Contracting Parties to the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands (COP12). The Contracting Parties
are meeting in Punta Del Este from 1 to 9 June 2015 to approve a new Strategic Plan to guide
national and international actions to conserve and wisely use wetlands in the next triennium,
2016 to 2024.
The UAEs decision to host COP13 confirms our support to the Convention at the regional and
international level, said H.E. Eng. Marian Mouhammed Saeed Hared, Acting Assistant under
Secretary, Water Resource and Nature Conservation Affairs. Wetlands have received the
attention of the government and the UAE vision 2024 confirms the importance of conserving our
rich natural environment and protecting these fragile ecosystems from urbanization and human
activities.
The United Arab Emirates has been a party to the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands since 2007
and has designated 5 wetland sites onto the List of Wetlands of International Importance
(Ramsar Sites), considered to be of high value to the country and the world because of the
ecosystem services they provide. Although the United Arab Emirates is better known for being
situated in one of the most arid regions of the world, the wetland ecosystem in the country is one
of the most unique and diverse in the Arabian Pennisula. It includes marshes, vast tidal flats,
fresh water aquifers, mangroves and coral reefs.
On behalf of all the Contracting Parties , COP12 President, Jorge Rucks, Under-Secretary,
Ministry of Housing, Territorial Planning and Environment, Uruguay, expressed thanks to UAE
for the invitation extended to host COP13.

Montreux Record
Montreux Record under the Convention is a register of wetland sites on the List of Wetlands of
International Importance where changes in ecological character have occurred, are occurring, or
are likely to occur as a result of technological developments, pollution or other human
interference. It is maintained as part of the Ramsar List. The Montreux Record was established
by Recommendation 4.8 of the Conference of the Contracting Parties (1990). Resolution 5.4 of
the Conference (1993) determined that the Montreux Record should be employed to identify
priority sites for positive national and international conservation attention. Sites may be added to
and removed from the Record only with the approval of the Contracting Parties in which they lie.
As of September 2007, 59 Ramsar sites are present in the Montreux Record 23 sites which had
been listed on the Montreux Record have since been removed from it
World Wetland Day
World Wetlands Day which is celebrated each year on 2 February, marks the date of the
adoption of the Convention on Wetlands on 2 February 1971, in the Iranian city of Ramsar on
the shores of the Caspian Sea. World Wetlands Day was celebrated for the first time on February
2, 1997, on the 16th anniversary of the Ramsar Convention. Each year since 1997, government
agencies, non-governmental organizations, and groups of citizens at all levels of the community
have taken advantage of the opportunity to undertake actions aimed at raising public awareness
of wetland values and benefits in general and the Ramsar Convention in particular.
3. Salim Ali Centre for Ornithology and Natural History (SACON)
The necessity for the study and conservation of birds in particular, and wildlife and biodiversity
in general, prompted the Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India to establish
the Salim Ali Centre for Ornithology & Natural History as a public - NGO partnership between
the MoEF, and the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) under the Centre of Excellence
Scheme in 1988. The Salim Ali Centre for Ornithology & Natural History (SACON) is a Society
registered in 1990 under the Societies registration Act, with the object of establishing and
developing a Centre of Excellence to assist, institute, conduct and promote scientific research in
ornithology, and of species, habitats and ecosystems with and within which avifauna coexist, and
developing scientific solutions to species, habitat and landscape conservation problems that are
sensitive to the socio-economic realities and aspirations of the people.
SACON commenced functioning in 1992, and is situated at Anaikatty, Coimbatore, Tamil
Nadu. A brief account of the organisation is given below:

Governance: The President of the SACON Society is the Hon'ble Minister for Environment and
Forests, GOI. The Centre is administered by a Governing Council, whose Chairperson is the
Secretary to the Government of India, Ministry of Environment and Forests. Research, education
and extension activities are monitored by a Research Monitoring and Advisory Committee
whose Chairperson is an ornithologist / wildlife biologist of eminence, and the finances of the
Centre are supervised by a Finance Sub-committee whose Chairperson is the Financial Advisor
to the MoEF.
Staff: SACON has a sanctioned staff strength of 22 scientists. It presently has eight scientists and
37 research fellows, and 15 administrative and support staff. The Centre is divided into the
functional divisions of Conservation Ecology, Landscape Ecology, Eco-toxicology,
Environmental Impact Assessment, Nature Education, Library, Administration and Finance.
Research Projects Undertaken: Since 1992, SACON has undertaken 174 Research and
Environment Assessment Projects with a financial value of approximately 12 crores.
Publications: The outputs of SACON include 161 reports, 263 papers in scientific / professional
journals, 409 presentations in seminars / symposia and workshops, 35 articles in News Letters,
11 Chapters in Books, and two Books. The Centre is affiliated to the Bharathiar University,
Coimbatore and so far 25 PhD degrees have been awarded or the dissertations submitted, five
MPhil degrees have been awarded, and the faculty have co-guided 22 MSc dissertations.
Infrastructure: SACON functions from a 55 acres campus at Anaikatty about 25 km west of
Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu. The Centre has 6 blocks: central, east, library, laboratory, hostel,
kitchen & dining room, with a built up area of 3,746.91 m2 (40,333 ft2). The library has 3145
books, subscribes to 74 periodicals (43 International and 31 Indian) with 2508 back volumes and
2706 maps and subscribes to online archives such as JSTOR The laboratory is equipped to
examine environmental contamination in species and ecosystems, and the instrumentation
includes a UV spectrophotometer, HPLC, flame atomic absorption spectrophotometer, with
graphite furnace and mercury hydride generator, dissolved oxygen and biochemical oxygen
demand incubators, high volume air sampler and a water quality analyzer.