The Montreux Record and Ramsar sites

The list of Ramsar sites in India comprises wetlands deemed to be of  "International Importance" under the Ramsar convention.

The Montreaux Record is a voluntary mechanism to highlight specific wetland of international importance under the Ramsar convention, but which are facing immediate challenges. 

In particular, the Montreux Record is a register of listed Ramsar sites where changes in ecological character have occurred, are occurring, or are likely to occur as a result of technological developments, pollution or other human interference.

At present, 51 sites were listed in the Montreaux Record. 

The Montreaux Record was established by Recommendation 4.8 at the 1990 cop. 

• Indian sites in the Montreaux Record are Keoladeo National Park-Rajasthan, Loktak Lake – Manipur.

List of Indian wetlands under Ramsar Convention:

Sr. No.	Name of Wetland	State	Date of Declaration
1.	Chilika lake	Orissa	01 – 10 – 1981
2.	Keoladeo National park	Rajasthan	01 – 10 – 1981
3.	Harike Lake	Punjab	23 – 03 – 1990
4.	Loktak Lake	Manipur	23 – 03 – 1990
5.	Sambhar Lake	Rajasthan	23 – 03 – 1990
6.	Wular Lake	Jammu Kashmir	23 – 03 – 1990
7.	Ashtamudi wetland	Kerala	19 – 08 – 2002
8.	Bhitarkanika Mangroves	Orissa	19 – 08 – 2002
9.	Bhoj wetland	Madhya Pradesh	19 – 08 – 2002
10.	Deepor Beel	Assam	19 – 08 – 2002
11.	East Calcutta wetlands	West Bengal	19 – 08 – 2002
12.	Kanjili	Punjab	22 – 01 – 2002
13.	Ropar P	unjab	22 – 01 – 2002
14.	Kolleru Lake	Andhra Pradesh	19 – 08 – 2002
15.	Point calimere	Tamil Nadu	19 – 08 – 2002
16.	Pong Dam Lake	Himachal Pradesh	19 – 08 – 2002
17.	Sasthamkotta Lake	Kerala	19 – 08 – 2002
18.	Tsomoriri	Jammu & Kashmir	19 – 08 – 2002
19.	Vembanad-kol wetland	Kerala	19 – 08 – 2002
20.	Chandertal wetland	Himachal Pradesh	08 – 11 – 2005
21.	Hokera wetland	Jammu & Kashmir	08 – 11 – 2005
22.	Renuka wetland	Himachal Pradesh	08 – 11 – 2005
23.	Rudrasagar Lake	Tripura	08 – 11 – 2005
24.	Surinsar-Mansar Lakes	Jammu & Kashmir	08 – 11 – 2005
25.	Upper Ganga River	Uttar Pradesh	08 – 11 – 2005 (Brijghat to Narora stretch)

Ramsar Convention on Wetland

The Convention on Wetlands, signed in Ramsar, Iran, in 1971, is an intergovernmental treaty which provides the framework for national action and international cooperation for the conservation and wise use of wetlands and their resources. 

There are presently 158 Contracting Parties to the Convention, with 1758 wetland sites, totaling 161 million hectares, designated for inclusion in the Ramsar List of Wetlands of International Importance. Ramsar Convention is the only global environment treaty dealing with a particular ecosystem.

The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands was developed as a means to call international attention to the rate at which wetland habitats were disappearing, in part due to a lack of understanding of their important functions, values, goods and services. Governments that join the Convention are expressing their willingness to make a commitment to helping to reverse that history of wetland loss and degradation.

In addition, many wetlands are international systems lying across the boundaries of two or more countries, or are part of river basins that include more than one country. The health of these and other wetlands is dependent upon the quality and quantity of the transboundary water supply from rivers, streams, lakes, or underground aquifers. This requires framework for international discussion and cooperation toward mutual benefits. The text of the Convention and other details can be accessed on Ramsar Convention's website ( www.ramsar.org)

Major obligations of countries which are party to the Convention are:

• Designate wetlands for inclusion in the List of Wetlands of International Importance.
• Promote, as far as possible, the wise use of wetlands in their territory.
• Promote international cooperation especially with regard to transboundary wetlands, shared water systems, and shared species.
• Create wetland reserves.

World Wetland Day

World Wetlands Day which is celebrated each year on 2 February, marks the date of the adoption of the Convention on Wetlands on 2 February 1971, in the Iranian city of Ramsar on the shores of the Caspian Sea. 

World Wetlands Day was celebrated for the first time on February 2, 1997, on the 16th anniversary of the Ramsar Convention.

 Each year since 1997, government agencies, non-governmental organizations, and groups of citizens at all levels of the community have taken advantage of the opportunity to undertake actions aimed at raising public awareness of wetland values and benefits in general and the Ramsar Convention in particular.