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1. NATIONAL PARKS IN INDIA:

National park, an area set aside by a national government for the preservation of
the natural environment. Most of the landscapes and their accompanying plants and
animals in a national park are kept in their natural state. Few countries have large
areas reserved in national parks, notably Brazil, Japan, India, and Australia.
According to the Indian Ministry of Environment & Forests, a national park is
“an area, whether within a sanctuary or not, notified by the state government to be
constituted as a National Park, by reason of its ecological, faunal, floral,
geomorphological, or zoological association or importance, needed to for the purpose
of protecting & propagating or developing wildlife therein or its environment. No
human activity is permitted inside the national park except for the ones permitted by
the Chief Wildlife Warden of the state under the conditions given in WPA 1972".
National parks in India are IUCN category II protected areas. India's
first national park was established in 1936 as Hailey National Park, now known as Jim
Corbett National Park, Uttarakhand. By 1970, India only had five national parks. In
1972, India enacted the Wildlife Protection Actand Project Tiger to safeguard the
habitats of conservation reliant species.
Further federal legislation strengthening protection for wildlife was introduced
in the 1980s. As of July 2018, there were 104 national parks encompassing an area of
40,501 km2 (15,638 sq mi), comprising 1.23% of India's total surface area.
List of few important national parks in India:

S.NO NATIONAL PARK STATE NOTABILITY

1. Jim Corbett National Park Uttrakhand Endangerd Bengal Tiger

2. Indra Gandhi WildlifeTN Elephant, Tiger

Sanctuary and National Park

3. Bannerghatta National Park Karnataka Tiger, sloth bear, peacock, elephant,

sambar deer, mouse deer
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4. Bhitarkanika National Park Odisha Mangroves, saltwatercrocodile,white

crocodile, Indian python, black ibis,wild
pigs, rhesus monkeys, olive ridley sea
turtle, chital

5. Blackbuck National Park,Gujarat cheetahs, Blackbuck Lodge, the

Velavadar endangered Indian grey wolf

6. Dachigam National Park J&K Kashmir stag

7. Desert National Park Rajasthan Great Indian Bustard

8. Gir Forest National Park Gujarat Asiatic Lion

9. Great Himalayan National ParkHimachal UNESCO World Heritage Site

Pradesh

10. Kaziranga National Park Assam Indian rhinoceros, UNESCO site

11. Manas National Park Assam One horn Rhino

12. Mukurthi National Park TN Nilgiri Tahr

13. Nokrek National Park Meghalaya UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve

14. Rajaji National Park Uttrakhand Elephants, Tigers, Leopards

15. Simlipal National Park Odisha Tiger, leopard, Asian elephant,

sambar,barking deer, gaur.

2. WILDLIFE SANCTUARIES IN INDIA:

Wildlife sanctuaries are established by IUCN category IV protected
areas. India has 543 wildlife sanctuaries. Among these, the 50 tiger reserves are
governed by Project Tiger, and are of special significance in the conservation of the
tiger. Some wildlife sanctuaries are specifically named bird sanctuary, e.g., Keoladeo
National Park before attaining National Park status.
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A wildlife sanctuary is a place of refuge where abused, injured and abandoned

captive wildlife may live in peace and dignity for the remainder of their lives.True
wildlife sanctuaries do not breed or exploit for commercial activites (including, but not
limited to: use of animals for entertainment or sport, sale or trade of animals, their
offspring or animal parts and by-products.)

A true sanctuary respects the integrity of individual animals, providing safe,

healthy, and secure refuge in enclosures specifically designed for the
unique animals whom they support.

Many of them being referred as a particular animal such as Jawai leopard

sanctuary in Rajasthan. Many National Parks were initially wildlife sanctuaries.The
conservative measures taken by the Indian Government for the conservation of Tigers
was awarded by a 30% rise in the number of tigers in 2015. Few of them are.,

S.NO WILD LIFE SANCTUARIES STATE

1. Nagarjunsagar-Srisailam TigerAP
Reserve
2. Kolleru lake AP

3. Salim Ali Bird Sanctuary Goa

4. Palamau Wildlife Sanctuary Jharkhand

5. Ranganthittu Bird Sanctuary Karnataka

6. Koyna Wildlife Sanctuary MH

7. Pulicat Lake Bird Sanctuary TN

8. Sathyamangalam Wildlife Sanctuary TN

9. Singalila National Park WB

3. WETLANDS IN INDIA:
“Areas of marshes, fen, peat-land or water whether natural or artificial,
permanent or temporary with water, that is static or flowing, fresh, brackish or salt
including areas of marine water, the depth of which does not exceed six metres”.
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Ramsar Convention:
It is named after the Iranian city of Ramsar, on the Caspian Sea. The Convention
on Wetlands was signed in Ramsar, Iran, in 1971, is an intergovernmental treaty
which provides the framework for national action and international cooperation for
the conservation and wise use of wetlands and their resources.

Montreux Record under the Convention is a register of wetland sites on the List
of Wetlands of International Importancewhere changes in ecological character have
occurred, are occurring, or are likely to occur as a result of technological
developments, pollution or other human interference. It is maintained as a part of the
Ramsar List.

World Wetlands Day

 Celebrated every year on 2nd February, marking the date of the adoption of
Convention on Wetlands in 1971.
 India is a party to the Convention since 1982 and committed to the Ramsar approach
of wise use of wetlands.

o The theme of World Wetlands Day for 2018 is “Wetlands for a Sustainable Urban
Future“. The 2018 theme marks the role of healthy wetlands play in making cities and
towns livable, through their role in groundwater recharge, buffering floods, filtering
wastewater, enhancing landscape aesthetics, providing income generation
opportunities and ultimately supporting well-being.
o World Wetlands Day (WWD), 2018 was celebrated in India at Deepor Beel, a Ramsar
Site in Guwahati.

List of Wetlands in India

India presently has 26 wetlands designated as Ramsar sites. This turns out to be 4.5
per cent of the total wetland area of the country. It is noteworthy that, 17 wetlands has
been identified in India on the verge of extinction.

1. Ashtamudi Wetland, Kerala

2. Bhitarkanika Mangroves, Orissa
3. Bhoj Wetland, Madhya Pradesh
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4. Chandertal Wetland, Himachal Pradesh

5. Chilika Lake, Orissa
6. Deepor Beel, Assam
7. East Calcutta Wetlands, West Bengal
8. Harike Lake, Punjab
9. Hokera Wetland, Jammu & Kashmir
10. Kanjli, Punjab
11. Keoladeo National Park, Rajasthan
12. Kolleru Lake, Andhra Pradesh
13. Loktak Lake, Manipur
14. Nalsarovar Bird Sanctuary, Gujarat
15. Point Calimere Wildlife and Bird Sanctuary, Tamil Nadu
16. Pong Dam Lake, Himachal Pradesh
17. Renuka Wetland, Himachal Pradesh
18. Ropar, Punjab
19. Rudrasagar Lake, Tripura
20. Sambhar Lake, Rajasthan
21. Sasthamkotta Lake, Kerala
22. Surinsar-Mansar Lakes, Jammu & Kashmir
23. Tsomoriri, Jammu & Kashmir
24. Upper Ganga River (Brijghat to Narora Stretch), Uttar Pradesh
25. Vembanad-Kol Wetland, Kerala
26. Wular Lake, Jammu & Kashmir

4. MANGROVES IN INDIA:

A mangrove is a shrub or small tree that grows in coastal saline or brackish

water. The term is also used for tropical coastal vegetation consisting of such species.
Mangroves occur worldwide in the tropics and subtropics, mainly between
latitudes 25° N and 25° S. The total mangrove forest area of the world in 2000 was
137,800 square kilometres (53,200 sq mi), spanning 118 countries and territories.[1]
Mangroves are salt-tolerant trees, also called halophytes, and are adapted to life
in harsh coastal conditions. They contain a complex salt filtration system and
complex root system to cope with salt water immersion and wave action. They are
adapted to the low oxygen (anoxic) conditions of waterlogged mud.
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The mangrove biome, or mangal, is a distinct

saline woodland or shrubland habitat characterized by depositional coastal
environments, where fine sediments (often with high organic content) collect in areas
protected from high-energy wave action. The saline conditions tolerated by various
mangrove species range from brackish water, through pure seawater (3 to 4%), to
water concentrated by evaporation to over twice the salinity of ocean seawater (up to
9%).
The mangrove biome, or mangal, is a distinct
saline woodland or shrubland habitat characterized by depositional coastal
environments, where fine sediments (often with high organic content) collect in areas
protected from high-energy wave action. The saline conditions tolerated by various
mangrove species range from brackish water, through pure seawater (3 to 4%), to
water concentrated by evaporation to over twice the salinity of ocean seawater (up to
9%).
Of the recognized 110 mangrove species, only about 54 species in 20 genera
from 16 families constitute the "true mangroves", species that occur almost exclusively
in mangrove habitats. Demonstrating convergent evolution, many of these species
found similar solutions to the tropical conditions of variable salinity, tidal range
(inundation), anaerobic soils and intense sunlight. Plant biodiversity is generally low
in a given mangrove.The greatest biodiversity occurs in the mangal of New
Guinea, Indonesia and Malaysia.
Mangroves can be found in over 118 countries and territories in the tropical and
subtropical regions of the world. The largest percentage of mangroves is found
between the 5° N and 5° S latitudes. Approximately 75% of world’s mangroves are
found in just 15 countries. Asia has the largest amount (42%) of the world’s
mangroves, followed by Africa (21%), North/Central America (15%), Oceania (12%)
and South America (11%).
As per the ISFR 2017 report, the total area of mangrove cover of India is 4921
km2, (181 km2 positively changed with respect to 2015 mangrove cover assessment)
which contributes 3.3% to the global mangrove cover. The deltas of
the Ganges, Mahanadi, Krishna, Godavari, and Kaveri rivers contain mangrove forests.
Backwaters in Kerala have high density of mangrove forest on the shores. Indian
mangroves consist of 46 species (4 of which are natural hybrids) belonging to 22
genera and 14 families, representing about 57% of the world’s mangrove species.
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The following table shows the prevalence of mangroves in the states of India and the
total area covered by them in square kilometer.

States/UTs with highest mangroveTotal mangrove cover in km2In

Rank
cover 2017

1 West Bengal 2114

2 Gujarat 1140

3 Andaman And Nicobar Islands 617

4 Andhra Pradesh 404

5 Maharashtra 304

6 Odisha 243

7 Tamil Nadu 49

8 Goa 26

9 Kerala 9

10 Karnataka 10