Sukhna wetland and Sauj Jheel declared Ramsar sites, taking India’s tally to 103

Sukhna wetland in Chandigarh and Sauj Jheel in Uttar Pradesh have been named Ramsar sites, raising the number of Indian wetlands recognised as being of international importance to 103.

Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav shared the news in a post on X on 15 October, according to a PTI report carried by ThePrint. Minister of State for Environment Kirti Vardhan Singh also announced the additions on 16 October, News On AIR reported.

• New sites: Sukhna wetland (Chandigarh) and Sauj Jheel (Uttar Pradesh)
• India’s total Ramsar sites: 103
• Ramsar Convention: international wetlands treaty adopted in 1971

Sukhna: a city lake on a bird flyway

Sukhna is a man-made lake built in 1958 at the foot of the Shivalik hills, the Free Press Journal noted, and it is one of Chandigarh’s best-known public spaces. Its habitats range from open water and shoreline vegetation to scrub and forest, PTI reported.

The wetland is an important halt on the Central Asian Flyway, giving resident and migratory waterbirds places to feed, breed, roost and spend the winter. Species found there include the common pochard, listed as vulnerable, along with the endangered Pallas’s fish eagle and the endangered black pond turtle, according to PTI and Manorama Yearbook. The lake borders the Sukhna Wildlife Sanctuary.

Punjab Governor and Chandigarh Administrator Gulab Chand Kataria hailed the recognition as a landmark moment for conservation, PTI reported, and credited residents, conservationists and the forest and wildlife department.

Sauj Jheel: a floodplain haven for waterbirds

Sauj Jheel lies in the Kishni area of Mainpuri district, according to the Free Press Journal. Manorama Yearbook describes it as a shallow lake on the Ganga floodplain, ringed by farmland and located near the Saman Bird Sanctuary.

The lake has stands of sacred lotus and wild sugarcane and is known to host more than 30,000 waterbirds on a regular basis, Manorama Yearbook reported. Among the notable birds are the vulnerable sarus crane and the greater spotted eagle.

Reactions

Yadav congratulated Uttar Pradesh and Chandigarh and invited people to visit the two wetlands, according to PTI.

Singh said safeguarding such ecosystems helps protect the country’s natural heritage, News On AIR reported, and credited Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s focus on wetland conservation.

Sources: ThePrint (PTI), News On AIR, Manorama Yearbook, Free Press Journal