289
Studies on freshwater bodies such as ponds, lakes,
reservoirs, wetlands, rivers and streams have gained
much signifi cance in recent years due to their
importance. These waterbodies harbour wide array
of aquatic organisms.
20.1 Indian Freshwater Marshes
India is said to be one of the most populous countries in the world. In spite of their abundance
once upon a time, wetlands are not much seen
today, mainly because of droughts, fl oods, soil
erosion, overgrazing, desertifi cation, climate
change, etc. Agriculture is done in and around the
alluvial plains and coastal zones on c 55 % of the
land employing about 2/3 of the labour force.
Wetlands are severely under human intervention
for various purposes like farm expansion, water
drainage and urbanisation. Today, they are generally over-exploited and left uncared for. As such,
many of them have been undergoing fast dereliction. These have been causing ‘natural’ as well as
‘man-made’ disasters to man and habitat alike.
However, Keoladeo National Park at Bharatpur
in Rajasthan is an example, where the once hunting reserve is today a protected area of international signifi cance (Prasad et al. 1996 ).
20.1.1 Classifi cation and Distribution
of Wetlands in India
India has c 67,429 wetlands covering an area of
c 4.1 million ha. Out of these, 2,175 (1.5 million
ha) are natural and 65,254, (2.6 million ha) are
man-made wetlands. Wetlands in India (excluding rivers) account for 18.4 % of the country’s
geographical area, of which 70 % is under paddy
cultivation (Ministry of Environment and Forests,
Govt. of India 2007 ). Mangroves occupy an area
of approx. 0.45 million ha. About 80 % of the
mangroves are said to be distributed in the
Sundarbans of West Bengal and Andaman and
Nicobar Islands and the rest in the coastal states
of Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu,
Karnataka, Kerala, Goa, Maharashtra and
Gujarat. The Directory of Indian Wetlands published by WWF and Asian Wetland Bureau in
1995 records 147 sites as important. Of these, 68
are protected under the National Protected Area
Network by the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972.
State-wise distribution of wetlands in India is
shown in tables 20.1 and 20.2 .
Natural wetlands in India consist of the highaltitude Himalayan lakes, followed by wetlands
situated in the fl oodplains of the major river systems; saline and temporary wetlands of the arid
20
Wetlands of India
D. Kar, Wetlands and Lakes of the World,
DOI 10.1007/978-81-322-1023-8_20, © Springer India 2013
Studies on freshwater bodies such as ponds, lakes,
reservoirs, wetlands, rivers and streams have gained
much signifi cance in recent years due to their
importance. These waterbodies harbour wide array
of aquatic organisms.
20.1 Indian Freshwater Marshes
India is said to be one of the most populous countries in the world. In spite of their abundance
once upon a time, wetlands are not much seen
today, mainly because of droughts, fl oods, soil
erosion, overgrazing, desertifi cation, climate
change, etc. Agriculture is done in and around the
alluvial plains and coastal zones on c 55 % of the
land employing about 2/3 of the labour force.
Wetlands are severely under human intervention
for various purposes like farm expansion, water
drainage and urbanisation. Today, they are generally over-exploited and left uncared for. As such,
many of them have been undergoing fast dereliction. These have been causing ‘natural’ as well as
‘man-made’ disasters to man and habitat alike.
However, Keoladeo National Park at Bharatpur
in Rajasthan is an example, where the once hunting reserve is today a protected area of international signifi cance (Prasad et al. 1996 ).
20.1.1 Classifi cation and Distribution
of Wetlands in India
India has c 67,429 wetlands covering an area of
c 4.1 million ha. Out of these, 2,175 (1.5 million
ha) are natural and 65,254, (2.6 million ha) are
man-made wetlands. Wetlands in India (excluding rivers) account for 18.4 % of the country’s
geographical area, of which 70 % is under paddy
cultivation (Ministry of Environment and Forests,
Govt. of India 2007 ). Mangroves occupy an area
of approx. 0.45 million ha. About 80 % of the
mangroves are said to be distributed in the
Sundarbans of West Bengal and Andaman and
Nicobar Islands and the rest in the coastal states
of Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu,
Karnataka, Kerala, Goa, Maharashtra and
Gujarat. The Directory of Indian Wetlands published by WWF and Asian Wetland Bureau in
1995 records 147 sites as important. Of these, 68
are protected under the National Protected Area
Network by the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972.
State-wise distribution of wetlands in India is
shown in tables 20.1 and 20.2 .
Natural wetlands in India consist of the highaltitude Himalayan lakes, followed by wetlands
situated in the fl oodplains of the major river systems; saline and temporary wetlands of the arid
20
Wetlands of India
D. Kar, Wetlands and Lakes of the World,
DOI 10.1007/978-81-322-1023-8_20, © Springer India 2013