By Belinda Wright, Executive Director, Wildlife Protection Society of India
Wetlands play a vital role in sustaining the environment, yet little is generally known about them and they are not adequately protected by the law. They are one of the most highly productive ecosystems on earth and the life support system for everyone who lives around them. They support a huge variety of birds and provide a vital habitat for fish also nature’s tool for flood control, soil erosion and wastewater treatment, and they act as a buffer against cyclones and stabilise the shoreline. Yet despite these important functions, wetlands are not legally perceived in India as a specific habitat and there is no central legislation for their protection. Technically, a “wetland” is land that is covered, permanently or periodically, by shallow water. Itis usually found in an area where the water table is near the water surface. Wetlands are generally classified as wastelands, which makes one of the most vital ecosystems virtually void of protection and open to all sorts of abuse, including pesticide and sewage discharge, drainage, and widespread conversion for agricultural land and urban construction. Despite their crucial contribution to the welfare of mankind, wetlands – perhaps more than any other habitat – are constantly under human pressure and are the most affected by degradation. The Ministry of Environment and Forests has implemented a Wetland Conservation Programme since 1987. Twenty wetlands in 13 states are covered to formulate and implement action plans, promote research activities, assess wetland resources in India, and identify wetlands of national importance. The present annual budget for the programme is five crores. Wetlands include estuaries, rivers, lakes, swamps, mangroves, backwaters, salt flats, flood plains, and even tank reservoirs and water-logged areas. In 1990, the Ministry of Environment and Forests estimated that India had about 1.5 million hectares of natural wetlands and 2.6 million hectares of man-made wetlands. Over 40% of these wetlands are outside the Protected Area network and have no legal protection. However, India’s courts have – from time to time – recognised wetlands as an important part of the natural environment, Where to, the birds of paradise? and therefore one that, under Article 51A of the Constitution of India, the people of this nation are bound to protect as part of their “fundamental duties’. Under Article 21 of the Constitution of India, as interpreted by the Supreme Court in various judgements (e.g. Subhash Kumar vs State of Bihar AIR 1991 SC 420), the right to environment is also an inherent aspect of the right to life. The importance Wetlands are also nature’s tool for flood control, soil erosion and wastewater treatment, and they act as a buffer against cyclones and stabilise the shoreline. Yet despite these important functions, wetlands are not legally perceived in India as a specific habitat and there is no central legislation for their protection of wetlands was also amply laid down ina judgement in the Calcutta High Court in 1992, and in a judgement in the Allahabad High Court in 2002. The landmark judgement given by the Calcutta High Courtin 1992 was in response to a writ petition filed by an NGO known as PUBLIC. The petition was about the protection of wetlands on the eastern fringes of the city of Calcutta. In its judgement, the: Court upheld that wetlands were “a bounty of nature” that “assists mankind to live in a cleaner and purer environment”. The Court ordered that Calcutta’s wetlands should therefore be preserved and that no interference or reclamation should be permitted. Unfortunately this far-reaching judgement is very specific in its scope and only binding in the State of West Bengal.
UNESCO’s Man and Biosphere Programme is a network of major ecosystem types and landscapes that was set up to promote the conservation of areas with ‘exceptional biological diversity and In India, wetlands come under the Ministry of Rural Development (and not the Ministry of Environment and Forests which, surely, is where they belong)
characteristic flora and fauna”. In India, 19 places have been designated as Ramsar sites in the states of Kerala, Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Assam, West Bengal, Punjab, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, Manipur, Tamil Nadu, Himachal Pradesh, and Jammu and Kashmir. These include Keoladeo National Park, Chilika Lake, Harike Lake, the East Calcutta Wetlands, and Loktak Lake. Under Article 4 of the Convention, signatories must promote the conservation of wetlands and waterflow! by establishing nature reserves, and provide adequate protection to these reserves. Parties are also required to formulate and implement domestic law to promote conservation of wetlands – which is something India has never done. Since November 1983, India has also been a party to The Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMC). This Convention requires parties to conserve migratory species, including the many species of birds that over-winter in wetlands. India is also a signatory to the CMS Memorandum of Understanding concerning ‘Conservation Measures for the Siberian Crane’. Eighteen species of waterbirds in India are listed under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES). Of the 263 water and wetland dependent birds found in India, 32 species are listed as Globally Threatened. India became a Party to the Intemational Convention on Biological Diversity in May 1994. The objectives of the Convention are LAWZ @215 MAY 2014 the conservation of biological diversity, the sustainable use of components of biological diversity, and the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising out of the utilisation of genetic resources. The preamble to the Convention identifies in- situ conservation of ecosystems and natural habitats as the “fundamental requirement for the conservation of biological diversity”. The Convention also outlines legal strategies for the protection of threatened species, and requires regulation of biological resources within or outside protected areas. India drafted a Biodiversity Bill in 1997 and revised it in 2000, along the lines of this Convention, but it ran into controversy and still has not been passed by Parliament. All these judgements, laws and international conventions do of course help, but they are far from adequate. The basic problem is that India’s domestic laws do not directly address the protection of wetlands as a specific issue. Central legislation is urgently required to sustain this crucial aspect of our environment.
The Author is the Executive Director, of Wildlife Protection Society of India.