Process for revising framework for wetlands initiated: Govt

The government today said that it has initiated the process of revising the existing regulatory framework for wetlands as its conservation and wise use are its top priority.
On the eve of World Wetlands Day, Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar said that the government is also mulling upgrading the existing Wetland Research and Training Centre of Chilika Development Authority at Barkul in Odisha into the National Capacity Development Centre for Wetlands.
"The Environment Ministry will continue to accord high priority to conservation and wise use of wetlands in the country.
"The Ministry has also initiated the process of revising the existing regulatory framework on wetlands to enable a greater role and ownership by state governments in management of wetlands, particularly as water and land are state subjects," Javadekar said in his message.

He observed that the National Plan for Conservation of Aquatic Ecosystems (NPCA) provides the policy framework and support to state governments for integrated management of wetlands while the the state wetland authorities are envisaged to be entrusted the role of management and regulation of wetlands within their jurisdiction.
"In a strategic step towards increasing the capacity of wetland managers in integrated and holistic management, upgrading the existing Wetland Research and Training Centre of Chilika Development Authority at Barkul, Odisha into the National Capacity Development Centre for Wetlands is also being envisaged," he said.

This year the World Wetlands Day is being celebrated by the Ministry in collaboration with the West Bengal government at Sunderbans which is one of the largest single block of estuarine mangrove forests in the world and provides habitat to numerous plant and animal species, including the Royal Bengal Tiger.

Javadekar noted that ever since civilisations began,
wetlands have played an important role in development of human society and the "wise use" principle of wetland management encapsulates the linkages between wetland functioning and livelihoods on sustainable basis guided by ecosystem approaches.
He said that World Wetlands Day is celebrated on February 2 each year around the globe to mark the adoption of the Convention on Wetlands in the city of Ramsar in Iran in 1971 and is a day to promote, create awareness and ensure positive and affirmative action for conservation of wetlands.
"Water is life and wetlands are the life support systems that ensure functioning of the water cycle. Wetlands help recharge groundwater aquifers, cleanse polluted waters, protect shorelines and act as sponges to mitigate floods.

"The extensive food chain and biological diversity in wetlands make them 'biological supermarkets'. Wetlands are valuable as sources, sink and transformers of a multitude of biological, chemical and genetic material," he said.
He said that his ministry will look forward to working with state governments, experts, NGOs, private sector and concerned citizens from all walks of life to secure these natural resource endowments.