Ramsar Sites

Why in News?

• The Supreme Court has clarified that its direction requiring prior approval for mining within a 10-km radius of the Asan Wetland Conservation Reserve would apply to wetland conservation reserves across the country.

Prelims Pointers

• Ramsar Sites are wetlands designated under the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands (1971).
• India became a Contracting Party to the Ramsar Convention in 1982.
• India has 101 Ramsar Sites (2026), the highest in Asia.
• A Ramsar designation does not create a separate statutory protection regime under Indian law.
• Neither the Ramsar Convention nor the Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules, 2017 prescribe a statutory buffer zone around Ramsar Sites.
• There is no statutory prohibition on mining within a specified distance of a Ramsar Site under the 2017 Rules.
• The Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules, 2010 contained an explicit list of prohibited activities and required prior approval for activities within a wetland’s zone of influence.
• The 2017 Rules replaced the 2010 framework with a decentralised system under State Wetland Authorities.
• The Supreme Court (Asan Wetland case, 2024) directed that mining within 10 km of a Wetland Conservation Reserve requires prior approval of the Standing Committee of the National Board for Wildlife (NBWL) and/or the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC).
• This 10-km requirement is a judicial safeguard and not a statutory buffer prescribed under the Ramsar Convention or the Wetlands Rules.

UPSC Prelims Practice Question (English)

Q. With reference to Ramsar Sites and mining in India, consider the following statements:

1. The Ramsar Convention prescribes a statutory 10-km buffer zone around all Ramsar Sites.
2. The Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules, 2017 expressly prohibit mining within a specified distance of Ramsar Sites.
3. The Supreme Court’s direction requiring prior approval for mining within 10 km of the Asan Wetland Conservation Reserve is a judicial safeguard and not a statutory provision.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

A. 1 only
B. 2 and 3 only
C. 3 only
D. 1, 2 and 3

Answer: C

Explanation

• Statement 1: Incorrect. The Ramsar Convention does not prescribe a statutory buffer zone.
• Statement 2: Incorrect. The Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules, 2017 do not expressly prohibit mining within a specified distance of Ramsar Sites.

Statement 3: Correct. The 10-km requirement flows from the Supreme Court’s directions in the Asan Wetland case, not from the Ramsar Convention or the 2017 Rules.