Ansari releases book on Ramsar sites

New Delhi, Jul 25 (UNI) Vice-President Mohammad Hamid Ansari today released a book on Ramsar sites in India that are deemed to be wetlands of international importance.

The book 'Potential and Existing Ramsar Sites in India' is authored by Dr Asad R Rahmani, Director of Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) and Mr M Zafar-Ul-Islam of the National Wildlife Research Centre in Saudi Arabia.

Addressing a gathering here, the Vice-President said India is blessed with immense biological and ecological diversity. These include marine wetlands including coastal lagoons, rocky shores and coral reefs; estuarine wetlands including deltas, tidal marshes and mangrove swamps; wetlands associated with lakes; riverine wetlands; and marshy wetlands.

He informed that there were currently 25 Ramsar sites in India.

The number of these sites in India, the area they cover and the bio-geographical regions that they represent do not do justice to the existing biodiversity in the country.

Mr Ansari said the effort of Dr Asad Rahmani and Mr Zafar-ul Islam in identifying potential Ramsar sites in India is worthy of appreciation.

''Let us hope that their immense contribution would assist the Ministry of Environment in its efforts and eventually lead to some of these sites being recognised as wetlands of international importance,'' he added.

UNI NAB SKB RN2007