Lok Sabha Question No. 3625 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-08-08
Subject: Marsh Lands
Ministry: ENVIRONMENT,  FORESTS AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Asked by: Kani K. Navas

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.3625

TO BE ANSWERED ON 08.08.2022

## Marsh Lands

## 3625.  SHRI K. NAVASKANI:

Will the Minister of ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE be pleased to state:

- (a) whether there is any statistical data on the marsh lands in the country, if so, the details thereof;
- (b) the details of strategies and plans to preserve those marsh lands; and
- (c) if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER  OF  STATE  IN  THE  MINISTRY  OF  ENVIRONMENT,  FOREST  AND CLIMATE CHANGE

## (SHRI ASHWINI KUMAR CHOUBEY)

- (a) According to the definition of wetland under Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules 2017, an area of marsh, fen, peat land or water; whether natural or  artificial,  permanent  or  temporary,  with  water  that  is  static  or  flowing,  fresh, brackish or salt, including areas of marine water the depth of which at low tide does not exceed six meters, are considered as wetlands.

As  per  the  National  Wetland  Inventory  &Assessment,  2011,  Space  Applications Centre- ISRO Ahmedabad identified approximately 2.0 lakhs water bodies/wetlands (>2.25 hectares) across the country covering an area of approximately 10 million ha which  includes lakes/ponds, ox-bow  lakes, high altitude &  riverine wetlands, waterlogged areas, tanks, reservoirs, lagoons, creeks, sand beaches, corals, mangroves, mud flats, salt pans, aquaculture ponds, salt marshes, etc.

- (b) &  (c)  The  Ministry  of  Environment,  Forest  and  Climate  Change  (MoEF&CC)  has notified Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules, 2017 under the provisions of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 as regulatory framework for conservation and  management  of  wetlands  across  country  to  conserve,  manage  and  maintain  the ecological character of the wetlands without restricting its wise use.

Further,  the  Ministry  of  Environment,  Forest  &  Climate  Change  (MoEF&CC)  is currently  implementing  a  centrally  sponsored  scheme  namely,  National  Plan  for Conservation of Aquatic Eco-systems (NPCA) for conservation and management of identified  wetlands  (includes  lakes)  in  the  country  on  cost  sharing  basis  between Central  Government  and  respective  State  Governments.  The  scheme  covers  various activities  such  as  interception,  diversion  and  treatment  of  wastewater,  shoreline

protection, lake front development, in-situ cleaning i.e., desilting & de-weeding, storm water  management,  bioremediation,  catchment  area  treatment,  lake  beautification, survey & demarcation, bio-fencing, fisheries development, weed control, biodiversity conservation, education and awareness creation, community participation, etc.

Four  -  pronged  approach  of  preparing  Brief  Documents,  filling  Ecosystem  Health Cards, instituting Wetland Mitras and formulating Integrated Management Plans based on the health and specific threats facing the wetlands, is in place for conservation and management of wetlands.  Under the NPCA scheme, the central assistance is based on the  proposals  received  from  the  State  Governments  in  the  form  of  Integrated Management Plans including brief documents, in conformity with the guidelines and budget availability. So far, MoEF&CC has sanctioned proposals for conservation of 164 wetlands across the country and released an amount of about Rs. 1066.43 Crores as central share.

As a result of above said measures, 64 wetlands/water bodies have been designated as Wetlands of International Importance, Ramsar sites, across the country under Ramsar Convention  since  1981,  covering  total  area  of  around  1.25  million  Ha.  Out  of  64 Ramsar sites, 38 were designated in the last 7 years, i.e., from 2014 to till date.

A dedicated Web Portal (https:// indianwetlands.in) for Wetlands has been developed, which is a publicly available information and knowledge platform in order to facilitate knowledge  sharing,  information  dissemination,  host  capacity  building  material,  and provide a single-point access data repository for processing information and making it available to the stakeholders in an efficient and accessible manner.

A Centre for Wetlands Conservation and Management (CWCM) under the Ministry's National Centre for Sustainable Coastal Management (NCSCM) has been established to serve as a knowledge hub and to enable exchange of knowledge between wetland users, managers, researchers, policy-makers and practitioners and to assist the national and State/ UT Governments in the design and implementation of policy and regulatory frameworks,  management  planning,  monitoring  and  targeted  research  specifically related to wetlands.

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