PIB Tracker103 Ramsar sites across 28 States, up from 26 in 2014
A backgrounder sets out India's wetland network - first in Asia, third in the world - the nine criteria a site must meet, and the resolution India carried at the Convention's last conference of parties.
What happened
- India's Ramsar network has grown from 26 sites in 2014 to 103, covering more than 13.87 lakh hectares across 28 States and UTs - first in Asia and third in the world by number of sites.
- The Ramsar Convention was adopted at Ramsar, Iran on 2 February 1971, entered into force in 1975, and now has 172 contracting parties and over 2,536 sites; India joined on 1 February 1982.
- Its three pillars are wise use of all wetlands, designation and effective management of Ramsar sites, and international cooperation. Designation in India is initiated by the State or UT and forwarded by the environment ministry to the Ramsar Secretariat.
- A wetland must meet at least one of nine criteria - Group A on representative or unique wetland types, Group B on biodiversity, including 20,000 or more waterbirds or one per cent of a waterbird population, and criteria on fish and other taxa.
- Domestically the Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules 2017 apply, with NPCA, Amrit Dharohar, MISHTI and Mission Sahbhagita; at COP15 at Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe India's resolution on Promoting Sustainable Lifestyles for the Wise Use of Wetlands was adopted.
For Prelims
- The Convention's definition is broad: marsh, fen, peatland or water, natural or artificial, permanent or temporary, static or flowing, fresh, brackish or salt, including marine water no deeper than six metres at low tide - which is why reservoirs, salt pans and coral reefs can qualify.
- The Montreux Record is the Convention's list of Ramsar sites where ecological character has changed or is likely to change; Keoladeo National Park and Loktak Lake are India's entries, which is the fact examiners pair with the site count.
- India's firsts: Chilika (Odisha) and Keoladeo (Rajasthan) were designated in 1981, effective with accession in 1982. Tamil Nadu has the largest number of sites, and Sundarbans is the largest by area.
- Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules 2017 prohibit encroachment, setting up of industries, waste dumping and permanent construction in notified wetlands, and require State Wetlands Authorities to identify and notify them - the enforcement layer that designation itself does not supply.
- The delivery programmes: NPCA funds wetland and lake conservation on a cost-sharing basis with States; Amrit Dharohar (2023) promotes wetland conservation with community livelihoods; MISHTI targets mangrove restoration along the coastline; Mission Sahbhagita is the people's-participation framework with wetland health cards.
- Ecosystem services are the policy argument: wetlands store and recharge water, buffer floods, trap sediment and nutrients, sequester carbon in peat and support fisheries - which is why they are valued per hectare far above most land uses.
- World Wetlands Day is 2 February, the anniversary of the Convention, and each year carries a theme; the designation announcements are usually timed to it.
- Related conventions: the CBD with its Kunming-Montreal framework, CMS for migratory species and the Central Asian Flyway under it - the flyway that makes Indian wetlands internationally significant for waterbirds in the first place.
For UPSC: India: 103 Ramsar sites, 13.87 lakh hectares, 28 States and UTs, up from 26 in 2014. Designation is State-initiated; protection runs through the Wetlands Rules 2017, not the 1971 Convention.
What it is NOT: No list of the 103 sites and no State-wise distribution beyond the count of 28 States and UTs. Nothing on ecological condition - how many sites have management plans in force, how many are degraded, or what has happened to the two Indian sites on the Montreux Record. No budget figures for NPCA, Amrit Dharohar, MISHTI or Mission Sahbhagita, no area restored, and no reconciliation between the Ramsar count and the much larger number of wetlands notified under the 2017 Rules - the gap between international designation and domestic protection.
For Mains
Syllabus: GS3.14 · GS2.20 · Linkage L1
Anchor
India's Ramsar network stands at 103 Wetlands of International Importance covering more than 13.87 lakh hectares across 28 States and Union Territories, up from 26 sites in 2014 - first in Asia and third in the world by number.
Substantiation (data)
The Convention, adopted at Ramsar in 1971 and in force from 1975, has 172 parties and over 2,536 sites; India joined on 1 February 1982. Designation is initiated by States and forwarded by the environment ministry, and a wetland must meet at least one of nine criteria across wetland type and biodiversity, including thresholds of 20,000 waterbirds or one per cent of a waterbird population. Domestic implementation rests on the Wetlands Rules 2017 with NPCA, Amrit Dharohar, MISHTI and Mission Sahbhagita, and India's resolution on sustainable lifestyles for wise use was adopted at COP15.
Position
Quadrupling designations in twelve years is a real diplomatic and administrative achievement, and it has done something useful domestically: a Ramsar listing gives a State a reason to notify boundaries, commission a management plan and resist encroachment, which the Wetlands Rules alone have rarely achieved. Carrying a resolution at COP15 also shows India using the Convention rather than merely joining it.
Counterpoint
Designation is a label, not protection. The Convention has no enforcement power, protection depends on State Wetlands Authorities and the 2017 Rules, and two Indian sites sit on the Montreux Record for ecological deterioration. The release offers no condition assessment, no count of management plans in force and no restoration area - so a rising site count tells us about designation effort and nothing about whether wetlands are in better shape than in 2014.
Way forward
Publish a site-wise status report: management plan in force, boundary notified, ecological character assessment and threats, with the Montreux Record sites first. Report NPCA and MISHTI spending against area restored, and reconcile the 103 Ramsar sites with the wetlands notified under the 2017 Rules so the protection gap is visible.
Conclusion
A count worth citing and a condition report worth demanding. The next useful number is not the 104th site but how many of the 103 have a management plan that anyone follows.
Deploys into: Wetland conservation and the Ramsar Convention · International environmental agreements · Ecosystem services · Centre-State environmental administration
PIB Backgrounder · 2026-10-25 · PRID 2328132 · PIB source ↗