Two more wetlands in India were declared as Ramsar sites, taking the total number of protected sites in the country to 49, India's Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav said on Wednesday. Khijadia Wildlife Sanctuary in Gujarat and Bakhira Wildlife Sanctuary in Uttar Pradesh have been recognised as wetlands of international importance under the Ramsar Convention.

Yadav made the announcement at an event marking the celebration of World Wetlands Day on Wednesday at Sultanpur National Park in Gurugram, outside the national capital, which was included in the Ramsar list last year.

"I am happy that two more wetlands have been added to the Ramsar sites. India now has a network of 49 Ramsar sites covering an area of 10.93 hectares, the highest in South Asia," Yadav was quoted by PTI news agency as saying.

The United Nations' recognised World Wetlands Day is celebrated on February 2 to mark the adoption of the Convention on Wetlands in the Iranian city of Ramsar on the same day in 1971.  A Ramsar site is a wetland site designated to be of international importance under the Ramsar Convention, also known as The Convention on Wetlands, an intergovernmental environmental treaty established in 1971 by UNESCO, which came into force in 1975.

Wetlands, often known as 'liquid assets,' are crucial natural resources that help stabilise water supplies, cleanse polluted waters, protect shorelines, and recharge groundwater aquifers.

(SAM)