TN first State to have 10 Ramsar sites as 6 more get recognition

CHENNAI: Six more waterbodies in Tamil Nadu obtained Ramsar recognition on Wednesday. This takes the Ramsar tally to 10, which makes it the highest in the country.

"Extremely happy that six more wetlands in TN (Koonthankulam bird sanctuary, Gulf of Mannar Marine biosphere reserve, Vembanur wetland complex, Vellode bird sanctuary, Vedanthangal bird sanctuary Udayamarthandapuram bird sanctuary) have got Ramsar site recognition today. This international recognition is a matter of great pride and goes hand-in-hand with Tamil Nadu Wetland Mission. I congratulate TN Forest Department on this sterling achievement,” said the Chief Minister, on Twitter.

Kodikkarai or Point Calimere was the first Ramsar site in Tamil Nadu recognised in 2002 and after 20 years, three more wetlands Pallikarani Marsh, Pichavaram Mangroves and Karikili bird sanctuary were added into the Ramsar lite in July, this year.

"It is a matter of great pride that six more wetlands in Tamil Nadu have been declared as Ramsar sites. Last week Tamil Nadu got three Ramsar sites added to its only Ramsar site at Kodikkarai,” said Environment Secretary Surpriya Sahu.

The news of Ramsar recognition was shared on social media by Union Minister for Environment Bhupender Yadav in which he said that India got a total of 10 more Ramsar sites, among which six are from Tamil Nadu. The remaining four are Satkosia gorge in Odisha, Nanda Lake in Goa, Ranganathittu bird sanctuary in Karnataka and Sirpur wetland in Madhya Pradesh. With the addition of 10 more Ramsar sites, the total sites in India moves to 64.

Konndankulam is a conducive habitat for painted storks and ibis, Udayamarthandapuram supports monitor lizard and small scrub jungle forests. Vedanthangal is a migratory destination for pelicans, stork and endangered spoon bill, wildlife sources said.

Ramsar convention is the inter-governmental treaty that provides the framework for the conservation and wise use of wetlands and their resources. Ramsar convention was adopted in the Iranian city of Ramsar in 1971.