Consider the following statements:

1. Under Ramsar Convention, it is mandatory on the part of the Government of India to protect and conserve all the wetlands in the territory of India.

2. The Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules, 2010 were framed by the Government of India based in the recommendation of Ramsar Convention.

3. The Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules, 2010 also encompass the drainage area or catchment regions of the wetlands as determined by the authority.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

The correct answer is option 3, i.e 3 only.

• Ramsar Convention was signed in 1971 in the Iranian city of Ramsar and is one of the oldest inter-governmental accord for preserving the ecological character of wetlands.
  • Article 4 of the Ramsar Convention states that "Each Contracting Party shall promote the conservation of wetlands and waterfowl by establishing nature reserves on wetlands, whether they are included in the List or not, and provide adequately for their wandering." It is not mandatory on the part of the Government of India to protect and conserve all the wetlands in the territory of India. Hence, statement 1 is incorrect.
• Wetlands refer to the transitional areas between the terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.
  • The Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules, 2010 was notified by the Ministry of Environment and Forest to ensure better conservation and management and to prevent degradation of existing wetlands in India. However, it was not framed on the basis of recommendation of Ramsar Covention. Hence, statement 2 is not correct.
  • Its objectives were wetland conservation, wetland protection, and wetland management to ensure that no further degradation of wetlands takes place in India.
  • As per Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules, 2010, a "wetland" means an area or of marsh, fen, peatland or water; 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 metres and includes all inland waters such as lakes, reservoir, tanks, backwaters, lagoon, creeks, estuaries and manmade wetland and the zone of direct influence on wetlands that is to say the drainage area or catchment region of the wetlands as determined by the authority.  Hence, statement 3 is true.