The Autonomous Authority Will Regulate All Activities Affecting Vital Water Bodies

Gandhinagar: Waking up to the need for conserving the state’s wetlands and lakes, the Gujarat government has decided to constitute a first-of-its-kind Wetlands and Lakes Regulatory and Development Authority. An official associated with the formation of the new authority said, “Wetlands and lakes, both have great ecological and socio-economic importance but as of now they are encroached, damaged or heavily polluted. Hence there is a great need to protect these crucial water bodies.”

State told not to treat eco protection as a soft subject

The State government has failed to implement various Centrally sponsored projects aimed at rejuvenating the Pampa, the Vembanad Lake, and the Kuttanad water system, N.K. Sukumaran Nair, Pampa Parirakshana Samiti (PPS) general secretary, has said. Mr. Nair told The Hindu that the government should stop treating environment protection and nature conservation as soft subjects.

‘Stakeholders, State Govts Should Together Protect All Ramser Sites’

Thiruvananthapuram: Various stakeholders and state governments should come together to protect all Ramser-recognized wetland sites in the country, Infosys CEO Shibulal said. He was speaking at the first national seminar on Ramsar sites and wetland conservation in Alappuzha. India has 26 designated Ramsar sites and wetlands of international importance, with a total surface area of 6,89,131 hectares. While Kashmir, with four sites, tops the number of Ramsar sites in the country, Kerala, Punjab and Himachal Pradesh have three such sites each.