The centre declared the Nanjarayan Bird Sanctuary and Kazhuveli Bird Sanctuary in Tamil Nadu and Tawa Reservoir in Madhya Pradesh as three new wetlands as Ramsar Sites.With these inclusions, India has increased its tally of Ramsar sites to 85.Now, Tamil Nadu harbours a maximum number of Ramsar Sites (18 sites) followed by Uttar Pradesh (10 sites).
Key Facts About Three New Ramsar Sites
Nanjarayan Bird Sanctuary
- It is a large shallow wetland in northeastern Uthukuli Taluk, Tiruppur District, Tamil Nadu. Centuries ago, it was restored by a local King Nanjarayan.
- Spanning 125.865 hectares, the lake relies on rainfall from Nallar drainage and also supports agriculture and groundwater recharge.
- It hosts bird species like Bar-headed Goose, Northern shoveler, Spot-billed Pelican, Heronry.
- Designated as Tamil Nadu’s 17th bird sanctuary, it is actively protected and managed by the local community and forest department.
Kazhuveli Bird Sanctuary
- It spans over 5151.6 hectares on the Coromandel Coast in Villupuram district, north of Pondicherry.
- This large brackish lake, connected to the Bay of Bengal via the Uppukalli creek and Edayanthittu Estuary, is a vital wetland with diverse water features like estuarine, creek-fed brackish, and freshwater basins.
- In areas of brackish water, highly degraded mangrove patches containing Avicennia species are found.
- Also, in this area, reed (Typhaangustata) is found in several hundred hectares.
The Tawa Reservoir
- It is situated at the confluence of the Tawa and Denwa rivers near Itarsi town, was originally built for irrigation and now also supports power generation and aquaculture.
- The reservoir lies within the Satpura Tiger Reserve, bordering the Satpura National Park and Bori Wildlife Sanctuary.
- River Malani, Sonbhadra, and Nagdwari are the major tributaries of the Tawa reservoir.
- The Tawa River, a left-bank tributary, originates in the Mahadeo Hills of Chhindwara district, flows through Betul district, and meets the Narmada River in Narmadapuram district.
- It is the longest tributary of the Narmada river.
- The reservoir hosts Spotted deer and Painted Stork.
Ramsar Site
- Ramar Site refers to wetlands that have been notified by the signatory countries of the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance as being of international importance.
- The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance came into force in 1975.
- An international conference was held in the Iranian city of Ramsar in 1971 to build an international consensus on conserving and preserving wetlands worldwide.
- The list of the Ramsar sites is maintained by the Ramsar convention’s secretariat, based at the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) headquarters in Gland, Switzerland.
India and Ramsar Convention
- India ratified the Ramsar Convention on 1 February 1982.
- First Indian wetland sites- Keoladeo National Park (Rajasthan) and Chilika Lake (Odisha) in 1981.
- Tamil Nadu has 16 sites, and Uttar Pradesh has 10.
- Largest Ramsar site: Sunderban of West Bengal
- Smallest Ramsar: Renuka in Himachal Pradesh
Wetland
- Wetlands are areas where water covers the soil or is present either at or near the soil’s surface all year or for varying periods of time during the year. The wetlands can be on lands or coastal areas.