Context-In a major recognition towards Government of India’s effort towards conservation, restoration and rejuvenation of its wetlands, Ramsar has declared 10 more wetland sites from India as sites of international importance

These are:

• Maharashtra: Nandur (state’s first).
• Punjab: Keshopur-Miani, Beas Conservation Reserve and Nangal.
• Uttar Pradesh: Nawabganj, Parvati Agra, Saman, Samaspur, Sandi and Sarsai Nawar.
• The other 27 Ramsar sites are in Rajasthan, Kerala, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Assam, West Bengal, Jammu and Kashmir, Andhra Pradesh, Manipur, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu and Tripura.

This addition will help in achieving India’s ambition mission ‘Nal se Jal’ which aims to provide piped water connection to every household by 2024.

Ramsar Convention on Wetlands

• International treaty for “the conservation and sustainable use of wetlands”.
• It is also known as the Convention on Wetlands.
• It is named after the city of Ramsar in Iran.
• The Convention was signed on 2^nd of February 1971.
• The 2^nd of February each year is World Wetlands Day.
• Number of parties to the convention (COP) is170.
• At the centre of the Ramsar philosophy is the “wise use” of wetlands.
• Wise use: maintenance of ecological character within the context of sustainable development.

What is wetland

• The Convention uses a broad definition of wetlands. It includes all lakes and rivers, underground aquifers, swamps and marshes, wet grasslands, peatland, oases, estuaries, deltas and tidal flats, mangroves and other coastal areas, coral reefs, and all human-made sites such as fish ponds, rice paddies, reservoirs and salt pans.

Under the Convention, the Contracting Parties commit to:

• Work towards the wise use of all their wetlands;
• Designate suitable wetlands for the List of Wetlands of International Importance (the “Ramsar List”) and ensure their effective management;
• Cooperate internationally on trans boundary wetlands, shared wetland systems and shared species.

Ramsar Site

• At the time of joining the Convention, each Contracting Party undertakes to designate at least one wetland site for inclusion in the List of Wetlands of International Importance.
• The inclusion of a “Ramsar Site” in the List embodies the government’s commitment to take the steps necessary to ensure that its ecological character is maintained.
• There are over 2,300 Ramsar Sites on the territories of 170 Ramsar Contracting Parties across the world.
• The countries with the most Sites are the United Kingdom with 170 and Mexico with 142.
• Bolivia has the largest area under Ramsar protection.