Aquatic biodiversity protected areas, National parks, wild life sanctuaries, conservation reserves and community reserves and special focus Ramsar sites for Westland conservation

1. AQUATIC BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION
IMPORTANT SITES IN INDIA: National parks, Marine
protected areas, Wild life sanctuaries, Conservation and community
reserves SPECIAL FOCUS ON RAMSAR SITES
By:
BHUKYA BHASKAR
Fisheries
https://www.mapsofindia.com/water/

2. Introduction
• The Ramsar Convention is an international treaty for the
conservation and sustainable utilization of wetlands,
recognizing the fundamental ecological functions of wetlands
and their economic, cultural, scientific, and recreational value.
• World wide 2,493 nos of Ramsar Sites covering 256,786,063
ha. of this Africa (424); Asia (420); Europe (1126)
• Latin America and the Caribbean (216); North America (222);
Oceania (85)
• Based on wet lands types:
• Inland wetlands (2023)
• Marine or coastal wetlands (1015)
• Human-made wetlands (895)
• India entry into force 1 February 1982
• Ramsar sites 75 nos Surface area of 1.326.677 ha

3. Cont..
• There are 75 Ramsar sites in India.
• These are wetlands deemed to be of "international importance" under
the Ramsar Convention.
• For a full list of all Ramsar sites worldwide, see the List of Ramsar wetlands
of international importance.
• According To WWF-India, wetlands are one of the most threatened of
all ecosystems in India.
• Loss of vegetation, salinization, excessive inundation, water
pollution, invasive species, excessive development and road building, have
all damaged the country's wetlands.
• In 2022, Twenty Six new sites were added that includes Karikili Bird
Sanctuary, Pallikaranai Marsh Reserve Forest & Pichavaram Mangrove from
Tamil Nadu, Pala wetland from Mizoram, Sakhya Sagar from Madhya
Pradesh.
• The surface-area covered by Ramsar Sites are around 1,083,322 hectares.
• Tamil Nadu has the highest number of Ramsar Sites in India with 14
Ramsar Sites.
•

44. Source: https://wiienvis.nic.in/Database/ramsar_wetland_sites_8224.aspx

45. Biosphere Reserve
• Biosphere reserves are sites established by countries and
recognized under UNESCO's Man and the Biosphere (MAB)
Programme to promote sustainable development based on local
community efforts and sound science.The programme of Biosphere
Reserve was initiated by UNESCO in 1971.
• The purpose of the formation of the biosphere reserve is to
conserve in situ all forms of life, along with its support system, in
its totality, so that it could serve as a referral system for monitoring
and evaluating changes in natural ecosystems. The first biosphere
reserve of the world was established in 1979, since then the
network of biosphere reserves has increased to 631 in 119 countries
across the world (Read more at
• http://www.unesco.org/new/en/natural-
sciences/environment/ecological-sciences/biosphere-reserves/ ).
• Presently, there are 18 notified biosphere reserves in India.
• Biosphere Reserves in India (as on Dec, 2014)

46. Biosphere Reserves in India

48. Important Coastal and Marine Biodiversity Areas (ICMBAs)
in India

51. • India has taken several steps to achieve the National Biodiversity Target no 6 and Aichi
Biodiversity Target no 11 which aim to conserve a substantial portion of the coastal and
marine areas in the country and world respectively. Towards achieving these two targets,
106 coastal and marine sites have been identified and prioritized as Important Coastal and
Marine Areas (ICMBAs) by the Wildlife Institute of India. Sixty-two ICMBAs have been
identified along the west coast of India, and 44 have been identified along the east coast. Of
these, 22 ICMBAs have been prioritized for immediate conservation actions and proposed to
be upgraded as Protected Areas under categories such as Conservation or Communities
Reserve to increase participation of the local communities in governance

52. Protected Areas of India from 2000 to 2022

53. Protected Areas of India (As on December,
2022)

54. Protected Areas Point Location in Bhuvan Portal

55. List of Marine Protected Areas in Peninsular India

56. List of Marine Protected Areas in Islands
of India

60. List of National Parks

64. List of Wildlife Sanctuaries

65. List of Wildlife Sanctuaries

66. List of Wildlife Sanctuaries

67. List of Wildlife Sanctuaries

68. List of Wildlife Sanctuaries

70. List of Wildlife Sanctuaries

71. List of Wildlife Sanctuaries

72. List of Wildlife Sanctuaries

82. List of Conservation Reserves (as on January, 2023

85. List of Community Reserves (As on January, 2023

92. Referenes
• "75 Ramsar Sites in 75th Year of Independence". 15 August 2022. Retrieved 16 August 2022.
• ^ O'Neill, A. R. (2022). "Evaluating high-altitude Ramsar wetlands in the Sikkim Eastern Himalayas". Global Ecology and
Conservation. 20 (e00715): 19. doi:10.1016/j.gecco.2019.e00715.
• ^ "Five more sites of India added to Ramsar list as wetlands of International importance".
• ^ "Ramsar sites in India".
• ^ "Number of Ramsar sites in India jumped nearly 3 times since 2014: PM Modi". 29 January 2023.
• ^ "India adds 10 more wetlands designated as Ramsar sites to make total 64 sites".
• ^ "The List of Wetlands of International Importance (The Ramsar List) | Ramsar".
• ^ "Ramsar List" (PDF). Ramsar.org. Retrieved 31 March 2013.
• ^ "RAMSAR Wetland Sites".
• ^ "RAMSAR WETLANDS SITES (As on August, 2022)". ENVIS Centre on Wildlife & Protected Areas. 7 August 2022. Retrieved 7
August 2022.
• ^ "RAMSAR Wetland Sites". www.wiienvis.nic.in. Retrieved 2022-08-07.
• ^ "The List of Wetlands of International Importance (The Ramsar List) | Ramsar".
• ^ Jump up to:a b "Ramsar List" (PDF). Ramsar.org. Retrieved 31 March 2013.
• ^ "RAMSAR Wetland Sites".
• ^ "75 Ramsar Sites in 75th Year of Independence". pib.gov.in. Retrieved 2022-08-25.
• ^ "Kolleru Lake | Ramsar Sites Information Service".
• ^ "India | Ramsar".
• ^ "Surinsar-Mansar Lakes". Ramsar Sites Information Service. Retrieved 2017-06-18.
• ^ "Information Sheet on Ramsar Wetlands (RIS)" (PDF). rsis.ramsar.org. Retrieved 22 February 2022.
• ^ "Bakhira Wildlife Sanctuary Declared Ramsar Site". Drishti IAS. Retrieved 16 February 2022.
• ^ "wetlands: Khijadia Wildlife Sanctuary Is Now Gujarat's 4th Ramsar Site | Ahmedabad News - Times of India". The Times of
India. Retrieved 16 February 2022.
• ^ Ramanath V., Riyan (August 14, 2022). "Ramsar tag for three more Odisha wetlands". The Times of India. Retrieved 2022-09-
16.
• ^ Oppili, P. (August 14, 2022). "Ramsar tag for four more Tamil Nadu wetlands | Chennai News - Times of India". The Times of
India. Retrieved 2022-09-16.