NWIA National Brochure

8/2/2019 NWIA National Brochure

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Major wetland types of India as seen in IRS LISS-III FCC

Synoptic view of India in satellite FCC


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It gives me great pleasure to introduce the "Information Brochure on National Wetland Inventory and

Assessment" prepared by the Space Applications Centre, ISRO, Ahmedabad. Wetlands are areas of

critical ecological significance that support rich biodiversity including a large variety of plant and animal

species adapted to fluctuating water levels. Utility-wise, wetlands directly and indirectly support millions of

people in providing services such as food, fibre and raw materials. Thus, their identification and protection

becomes very important. Since, an updated geospatial database of these natural resources is thepre-requisite for effective management and conservation planning, National Wetland Inventory and

Assessment (NWIA) project was formulated as a joint programme of Ministry of Environment & Forests,

Government of India, and Space Applications Centre, ISRO, Ahmedabad.

I am informed that the latest remote sensing images from Indian Remote Sensing satellite (IRS P6)

have been used to map the wetlands. The wetland types found in India are categorized under 19 classes.

Mapping has been done at 1:50,000 scale and database organized at district, state and topographic maplevel. This National Atlas highlights the results in terms of statistics of various types of wetlands, extent of

water, aquatic vegetation and turbidity in pre- and post-monsoon period. I am told that the total wetland

area estimated is 10.002 Mha (excluding rivers). This atlas also provides database of high altitude wetlands

nestled in the Himalayas at different elevation ranges. I also note that special efforts have been made to

provide detailed information of important wetlands such as Ramsar sites etc.

I am sure that this brochure will be very useful for general public and will serves as a quick information

source of wetland status in our country.

18th

May 2011

From the Minister's Desk


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Wetlands are one of the most productive ecosystems and play crucial role in hydrological cycle. Wetlands

directly or indirectly help in storm and flood control, water supply, providing food, fibre and raw materials,

and in recreational benefits. However, the very existence of these unique resources is under threat due to

developmental activities and population pressure. This calls for a long term planning for preservation and

conservation of these resources. Creating an updated and accurate database that supports research and

decision-making is the first step towards this. Use of advanced techniques like satellite remote sensing andGeographic Information System (GIS) is helpful in acquiring and creating accurate and timely spatial

database of large areas. Space Applications Centre (ISRO) took up this challenging task under the project

'National Wetland Inventory and Assessment' (NWIA) sponsored by the Ministry of Environment & Forests,

Government of India. Two-date, IRS-P6 LISS-III data acquired during pre- and post-monsoon seasons are

used for inventory of wet and dry season hydrology of wetlands. The wetlands found in India have been

categorized following a 19 class hierarchical system and mapped following standard map projection. The

map outputs include the status of water spread, aquatic vegetation and turbidity. This information Brochuretitled 'National Wetland Inventory & Assessment' highlights the results of this project in a very concise way.

I am sure that this brochure will serve as a useful source of information on wetlands to researchers,

decision-makers, students and increase awareness on wetlands among general public.

AhmedabadMay 19, 2011

FOREWORD


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Under the National Wetland Inventory and Assessment project

Sponsored by Ministry of Environment and Forests, Govt. of India

Brochure SAC/ESPA/NWIA/BR/04/2011

Wetlands of India

S. Panigrahy, J. G. Patel, T. V. R. Murthy and T. S. Singh

Koothakulam tank, Tamilnadu


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Ox-bow lakes / Cut-off meanders


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BACKGROUND :

Wetlands are among the most productive ecosystems

besides being a rich repository of biodiversity, and areknown to play a significant role in carbon sequestration.Wetlands usually occur in depressions or along rivers,lakes, and coastal waters where they are subjected toperiodic flooding. Some wetlands also occur on slopesassociated with the ground water seeps. Conceptually,wetlands lie between well-drained upland andpermanently flooded deep waters of lakes, floodplains ofrivers and coastal environs.

As per Ramsar convention entered into force in 1975,wetlands are defined as: areas of marsh, fen, peatland or water, whether natural or artificial, permanentor temporary, with water that is static or flowing,fresh, brackish or salt, including areas of marinewater the depth of which at low tide does not exceedsix meters (www.ramsar.org). In addition, theConvention (Article 2.1) provides that wetlands: may

incorporate riparian and coastal zones adjacent tothe wetlands, and islands or bodies of marine waterdeeper than six meters at low tide lying within thewetlands.

The first scientific national inventory of wetlands in theIndia carried out at 1:250,000 scale by SpaceApplications Centre (ISRO), Ahmedabad at the behest ofthe Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF), Govt. of

India, using IRS satellite data (1992-93 timeframe) putthe total wetland extent at about 8.26 million ha. The

major wetland types found in India include river/stream,inter-tidal mudflat, reservoir, tank, and lake/pond. Indiahas also some of the unique wetlands like mangrove andcoral reef.

Wetlands being dynamic and influenced by both natural

and man-made activities, need frequent monitoring.Regular updation of the status of the wetlands is all themore significant in view of accelerating pressure on thevery existence of these resources due to developmentalactivities and population pressure being witnessedcurrently.

With this background, National wetland inventory andassessment (NWIA) project was formulated. The prime

objective of the project is to create a spatial database ofthe wetlands of India using satellite remote sensing data.Previous work has shown that there are a sizable fractionof small wetlands in the country. The numerous smallwetlands are of great significance for local levelmanagement of hydrology.

Thus, inventory at 1:50,000 scale is felt essential whichwill enable mapping of wetlands above the size of

2.25 ha area. NWIA project is sponsored by Ministry ofEnvironment and Forests (MoEF), and executed bySpace Applications Centre, ISRO, and Ahmedabad.

NATIONAL WETLAND INVENTORY AND ASSESSMENT :

The main objectives of the project were:

Wetland mapping and inventory at 1: 50 000 scale by

analysis of digital IRS LISS III data of post and pre-

monsoon seasons.

Creation of digital database in GIS environment.

Preparation of State-wise wetland atlases

As per the definition of wetland, diverse types of classesget included like lagoon, beach, mangrove, coral reef,salt pan, aquaculture pond, waterlogged, ox-bow lake,
http://www.ramsar.org/http://www.ramsar.org/http://www.ramsar.org/


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reservoir, lake, tank inter-tidal mudflat etc. For the

current inventory, a classification system based on

IUCN/RAMSAR definition and amenable from remotely

sensed data is used to categorise the wetlands. Total 19

types of wetlands were delineated using a hierarchical

system that excludes rice fields.

Wetland classification system

Level I Level - II Level - III Code

Inland 1000

Natural 1100

Lake/Pond 1101

Ox-bow Lake / Cut-offmeander

1102

High Altitude wetland 1103

Riverine Wetland 1104

Waterlogged 1105

River/Stream 1106

Man-made 1200

Reservoir/Barrage 1201Tank/Pond 1202

Waterlogged 1203

Salt Pan 1204

Coastal 2000

Natural 2100

Lagoon 2101

Creek 2102

Sand/Beach 2103

Intertidal Mud-flat 2104

Salt Marsh 2105

Mangrove 2106

Coral 2107

Man-made 2200

Salt Pan 2201

Aquaculture Pond 2202

This classification categorises inland and coastalwetlands at level-I followed by natural and man-madewetlands as level-II, which were further categorised into19 types of wetlands.

All these types show distinct signature in remote sensingdata and identifiable with high accuracy.

NWIA Outputs

Eight spatial layers for wetland with a unique 16 digit

identification code and nine base/reference layers are

generated as digital database:

Wetland extent: It is the wetland boundary

Water spread: There are two layers representing

post-monsoon and pre-monsoon water spread during

the year of data acquisition.

Aquatic vegetation spread: Layer pertaining to

presence of vegetation (floating and emergent) is

generated, as manifested on pre-monsoon and post-

monsoon imagery.

Turbidity level of open water: A layer pertaining to a

qualitative turbidity of the open water in the wetlands

rated as low, medium and high is generated for pre-

and post-monsoon seasons.

Small wetlands (


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Inland wetlands types in India Coastal wetlands types in India


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NWIA Findings

Entire country including the main land and islands

territories has been considered for inventory and

assessment of wetlands. Total wetland area estimated is

15.260 Mha, which is around 4.63 per cent of thegeographic area of the country. Total 201503 wetlands

have been mapped at 1:50,000 scale. In addition,

555557 small wetlands (


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Area under Aquatic VegetationPost-

monsoon(ha)

Pre-monsoon

(ha)

Aquatic Vegetation 1322837 2065096

The qualitative turbidity of water in wetlands is low in37.3% areas, moderate in 48.5% and high in 14.2% areain post-monsoons season. During pre-monsoon seasonlow turbidity was observed in 32.6% area, moderateturbidity in 51.1% and high turbidity in16.3% area.

Area under turbidity levelsPost-

monsoon(ha)

Pre-monsoon

(ha)

Low 3206003 1888493

Moderate 4168401 2967523

High 1226394 945204

Type-wise wetlands

The major wetland types in inland category areriver/stream, reservoir, tank/pond and lake/pond. Incoastal wetland category major types are inter-tidalmudflat, lagoon, and creek. Among all the wetland typesriver/stream is the major type, occupying 5.26 Mha area(34.46%).

Linaganmakki reservoir, Shimoga district, Karnataka

Reservoirs occupy 2.48 Mha (16.26%), inter-tidal mudflatoccupy 2.41 Mha (15.82%), tanks/ponds occupy 1.31

Mha area (8.6%) and lakes/ponds occupy 0.71 Mhaarea(4.78%).

Inter-tidal mud flat, Gulf of Khambhat, Gujarat

Type-wise wetland area of India

Wettcode Wetland categoryTotal

wetland

area (ha)

% ofwetland

area1101 Lake/Pond 729532 4.78

1102Ox-bow lake/Cut-off meander

104124 0.68

1103 High altitude wetland 124253 0.81

1104 Riverine wetland 91682 0.60

1105 Waterlogged(Natural) 315091 2.06

1106 River/Stream 5258385 34.46

1201 Reservoir/Barrage 2481987 16.261202 Tank/Pond 1310443 8.59

1203 Waterlogged(Man-made) 135704 0.89

1204 Salt pan(Inland) 13698 0.09

2101 Lagoon 246044 1.61

2102 Creek 206698 1.35

2103 Sand/Beach 63033 0.41

2104 Intertidal mud flat 2413642 15.82

2105 Salt Marsh 161144 1.06

2106 Mangrove 471407 3.09

2107 Coral Reef 142003 0.93

2201 Salt pan(Coastal) 148913 0.98

2202 Aquaculture pond 287232 1.88

Sub-total 14705015 96.36

Wetlands (


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Mangroves, Coral reefs, Beach and High altitude lakes

(>3000 m elevation), though contribute very small

percentage to total wetlands, are some of the unique

wetland types of India. There are 178 Lagoons and4703

high altitude lakes in the country.

IRS LISS-III images of magrove (Bhitarkanika, Orissa), coralreef (Lakshdweep) and lagoon (Asthamudi, Kerala) with fieldphotographs.

The Himalayan region is dotted with hundreds of lakes

from low elevation to the high elevations. Lakes lying

above 3000 m elevation, known as high altitude

wetlands, are mapped and a detailed inventory prepared

for the first time. Apart from their ecological significance,

the high altitude wetlands play crucial role in biodiversity,

wild life habitat and socio-economic aspects.

High altitude lakes: Part of Arunachal Pradesh

State-wise wetland distribution in India

The country has thirty five States/Union Territories(UTs).

State-wise distribution of wetlands showed that

Lakshadweep has 96.12% of geographic area under

wetlands followed by Andaman & Nicobar

Islands(18.52%), Daman & Diu(18.46%) and

Gujarat(17.56%), have the highest extent of wetlands.

Puducherry(12.88%), West Bengal(12.48%),

Assam(9.74%), Tamil Nadu(6.92%), Goa(5.76%), Andhra

Pradesh(5.26%), and Uttar Pradesh(5.16%) are wetland

rich states. The least extents(less than 1.5 % of the state

geographic area) have been observed in

Mizoram(0.66%) followed by Haryana(0.86%),

Delhi(0.93%), Sikkim(1.05%), Nagaland(1.30%), and

Meghalaya(1.34%).


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State/Union Territory-wise wetland area in India

States

Sr.No.

StateWetlandarea (ha)

% of stategeographic

area

1 Jammu & Kashmir 391501 1.762 Himachal Pradesh 98496 1.77

3 Punjab 86283 1.71

4 Uttarakhand 103882 1.94

5 Haryana 42478 0.86

6 Delhi 2771 0.93

7 Rajasthan 782314 2.29

8 Uttar Pradesh 1242530 5.16

9 Bihar 403209 4.40

10 Sikkim 7477 1.05

11 Arunachal Pradesh 155728 1.78

12 Nagaland 21544 1.30

13 Manipur 63616 2.85

14 Mizoram 13988 0.66

15 Tripura 17542 1.59

16 Meghalaya 29987 1.34

17 Assam 764372 9.74

18 West Bengal 1107907 12.48

19 Jharkhand 170051 2.13

20 Orissa 690904 4.49

21 Chhattisgarh 337966 2.50

22 Madhya Pradesh 818166 2.65

23 Gujarat 3474950 17.56

24 Maharashtra 1014522 3.30

25 Andhra Pradesh 1447133 5.26

26 Karnataka 643576 3.36

27 Goa 21337 5.76

28 Kerala 160590 4.13

29 Tamil Nadu 902534 6.92

Total 15017354

Union Territory

Sr.No.

Union Territories Wetlandarea (ha)

% of UTgeographic

area

1 Chandigarh 350 3.07

2 Daman & Diu 2068 18.46

3 Dadra & Nagar Haveli 2070 4.25

4 Lakshadweep 79586 96.12

5 Puducherry 6335 12.88

6Andaman & NicobarIslands

152809 18.52

Total 243218

List of states having more than 5 per cent of

geographic area under wetlandsSr.No.

State% of state

geographicarea

1 Lakshadweep 96.12

2 Andaman & Nicobar Islands 18.52

3 Daman & Diu 18.46

4 Gujarat 17.56

5 Puducherry 12.88

6 West Bengal 12.48

7 Assam 9.74

8 Tamil Nadu 6.92

9 Goa 5.76

10 Andhra Pradesh 5.26

11 Uttar Pradesh 5.16

List of states having more than one Mha area under

wetlands

Sr. No. State Wetland area (ha)

1 Gujarat 3474950

2 Andhra Pradesh 1447133

3 Uttar Pradesh 1242530

4 West Bengal 1107907

5 Maharashtra 1014522


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IINLAND WETLAND INVENTORY AND ASSESSMENT :

Inland Natural Wetlands

Tamil Nadu has highest number of lakes (4369) followedby Uttar Pradesh (3684) and West Bengal (1327).

Ox-bow lakes/Cut-off meanders are observed in UttarPradesh, West Bengal, Bihar, Assam and Orissa.

Large number of riverine wetlands exists in UttarPradesh, West Bengal, Bihar, Assam and Jammu &Kashmir.

Type-wise Inland wetland area of India

Sr.No.

Wetlandcategory

No. ofwetlands

Wetlandarea (ha)

% ofwetlandarea

Natural

1 Lake/Pond 11740 729532 6.56

2Ox-bow lake/Cut-off meander

4673 104124 0.94

3High altitudewetland

2707 124253 1.12

4 Riverine wetland 2834 91682 0.82

5 Waterlogged 11957 315091 2.83

6 River/Stream 11747 5258385 47.29

Sub-total 45658 6623067 59.56

Man-made

7Reservoir/Barrage

14894 2481987 22.32

8 Tank/Pond 122370 1310443 11.78

9 Waterlogged 5488 135704 1.22

10 Salt pan 60 13698 0.12

Sub-total 142812 3941832 35.44

Wetlands(


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Riverine WetlandsSr.No.

State NumberArea(ha)

1 Uttar Pradesh 1638 61100

2 Jammu & Kashmir 88 9594

3 West Bengal 490 8654

4 Assam 139 4258

5 Bihar 200 2118

Inland Natural - Riverine Wetland

Inland Man-made Wetlands

Andhra Pradesh has highest number of reservoirs (4527)followed by Madhya Pradesh (2005), Uttar Pradesh(1608), Orissa (1379) and Gujarat (1213). Details aresummarised below.

Large number of Tanks/ponds exists in Tamil nadu,Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh,Rajasthan and Karnataka.

Reservoirs/Barrages

Sr.

No.State Number

Area

(ha)

1 Andhra Pradesh 4527 4044992 Madhya Pradesh 2005 392455

3 Maharashtra 759 368135

4 Gujarat 1213 248979

5 Karnataka 70 213527

6 Rajasthan 979 190600

7 Orissa 1379 189972


9 Chhattisgarh 604 9038910 Tamil Nadu 99 56419

Tanks/Ponds

Sr.

No.State Number

Area

(ha)

1 Tamil Nadu 19343 237613

2 Karnataka 10386 222030

3 Maharashtra 15845 2086694 Andhra Pradesh 13708 201677

5 Rajasthan 10731 151027

6 Gujarat 8818 73873

7 Madhya Pradesh 15199 64768

8 Chhattisgarh 6906 40226


10 Orissa 6441 29301


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Inland Man-made Reservoir

Small village tanks/ponds are also useful wetlands. Small

wetlands (


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State-wise wetland area under different inland wetland typesArea in ha

SrNo

State/UTsLake/pond

Ox-bowlake/

Cut-offmeander

Highaltitudewetland

Riverinewetland

Waterlogged(Natural)

River/Stream

Reservoir/Barrage

Tank/Pond

Saltpan

Wetland(


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INVENTORY AND ASSESSMENT OF WETLANDS IN

COASTAL STATES :

India has long coast line and large area under Coastalwetlands. Area estimates of various wetland categoriesfor all the Coastal States and Union Territories have been

carried out using GIS layers encompassing wetlandboundary, water-spread, aquatic vegetation and turbidity.

In the Coastal States/UTs, 120019 wetlands have beendelineated. In addition, 289459 small wetlands (< 2.25ha) are also demarcated as point feature. Total wetlandarea estimated is 9.70 Mha which is around 6.94 per centof the geographic area. Total inland wetlands are 5.58Mha and coastal wetlands are 4.12 Mha.

The most dominant type of wetland is inter-tidal mud flats(2.39 Mha) occupying around 24.7 % of total wetlandarea. The other major coastal wetlands are mangrove(471407 ha), aquaculture pond (284589 ha), lagoon(246044 ha), creek (206698 ha) salt pan (148913 ha) andcoral reef (142003 ha). Though the coral reef is of minorcategory, they have significance in Lakshadweep,Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Gujarat, and Tamil Nadu.Presence of aquatic vegetation is observed in manywetland types. The area under aquatic vegetation issignificantly high during pre monsoon than that of postmonsoon period. Qualitative turbidity analysis of the openwater varied from moderate to low turbidity.

Type-wise wetland distribution in Coastal States/UTs

Type-wise wetland area in Coastal States

Sr.No.

Wetland CategoryTotal

WetlandArea(ha)

% ofWetland

Area

1 Lake/Pond 434798 4.48

2Ox-bow lake/ Cut-offmeander 20305 0.21



5 Waterlogged 119484 1.23

6 River/Stream 2144357 22.10

7 Reservoir/Barrage 1533138 15.80

8 Tank/Pond 997435 10.28

9 Waterlogged 34039 0.35

10 Salt pan(Inland) 1407 0.01

11 Lagoon 246044 2.54

12 Creek 206698 2.13

13 Sand/Beach 63033 0.65

14 Inter-tidal mud flat 2394692 24.68

15 Salt Marsh 161144 1.66

16 Mangrove 471407 4.86

17 Coral Reef 142003 1.46

18 Salt pan(Coastal) 148913 1.53


Sub-Total 9414792 97.02

Wetland (


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Wetland area summary of Coastal States/UTsArea in ha

Sr.No.

StateInland wetland

areaCoastal wetland

areaTotal wetland

area% of state

geographic area1 West Bengal 886090 221817 1107907 12.48

2 Orissa 525248 165656 690904 4.493 Gujarat 667899 2807051 3474950 17.56

4 Daman & Diu 603 1465 2068 18.465 Maharashtra 907816 106706 1014522 3.30

6 Andhra Pradesh 1038787 408346 1447133 5.267 Karnataka 635289 8287 643576 3.368 Goa 12851 8486 21337 5.76

9 Lakshadweep - 79586 79586 96.1210 Kerala 119714 40876 160590 4.1311 Tamil Nadu 780161 122373 902534 6.9212 Puducherry 4264 2071 6335 12.88

13 Andaman & Nicobar Islands 7006 145803 152809 18.52Total 5585728 4118523 9704251 6.94

Type-wise area estimates of coastal wetlands

Area in ha

Sr.No.

State Lagoon CreekSand/Beach

Inter-tidalmud flat

SaltMarsh

MangroveCoralReef

Saltpan

Aquaculturepond

1 West Bengal - - 3338 2726 - 209330 - 4937 1557

2 Orissa 89023 - 6046 25514 - 23395 - 1726 19952

3 Gujarat 22289 149898 6508 2260365 144268 90475 33547 92173 8823

4 Daman & Diu 24 - 204 1054 57 63 - 63 -

5 Maharashtra - 41636 4873 22249 614 30238 - 7025 71

6 Andhra Pradesh 47407 9594 15891 31767 4002 41486 - 17725 240474

7 Karnataka 72 97 1897 1663 - 967 - 812 2779

8 Goa - - 519 3286 - 1752 - 2970 -

9 Lakshadweep 23674 - 733 - - - 55179 - -10 Kerala 38442 80 2354 - - - - - -

11 Tamil Nadu 25057 3404 9798 33164 6108 7315 3899 22889 10739

12 Puducherry - 212 809 505 66 285 - - 194

13 Andaman & Nicobar Islands 56 1777 10063 12399 6029 66101 49378 - -

Total 246044 206698 63033 2394692 161144 471407 142003 150320 284589

M d l f i l d A d i b h W B l h


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Mangrove and coral reef are important wetland areas. Area under mangroves is about 471407 ha. West Bengal has209330 ha area under mangrove followed by Gujarat (90475 ha), Andaman & Nicobar Islands (66101 ha), AndhraPradesh(41486 ha), Maharashtra (30238 ha) and Orissa (23395 ha).

Coastal Natural - Mangrove

C l f b d i L k hd (55179 h ) A d d Ni b I l d (49378 h ) G j t (33547 h ) d


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Coral reefs are observed in Lakshdweep (55179 ha), Andaman and Nicobar Islands (49378 ha), Gujarat (33547 ha) andTamil nadu (3899 ha). Total area under Coral reef is 142003 ha.

Coastal Natural Coral Reef

There are 178 lagoons having area about 246044 ha which is 1 61 % of total wetland area of the country Orissa has


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There are 178 lagoons having area about 246044 ha which is 1.61 % of total wetland area of the country. Orissa has89023 ha area under lagoons followed by Andhra Pradesh (47407 ha) and Kerala (38442 ha).

Inter-tidal mud -flats are observed in all the coastal states accept Lakshdweep and Kerala. Gujarat has large area underinter-tidal mud-flats (2260365 ha) followed by Tamil Nadu (33164 ha), and Andhra Pradesh (31767 ha).

Coastal Natural Lagoon Coastal Natural - Inter-tidal mud flat

INVENTORY AND ASSESSMENT OF HIGH ALTITUDE th 500 h H th t ib t t hi h t


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INVENTORY AND ASSESSMENT OF HIGH ALTITUDE

LAKES :

All wetlands lying above 3000 m elevation are

designated as high altitude ones in this work. Mapping

was carried out is done at 1:50,000 scale. Small lakes

(


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lakes are mapped in the very high altitude range of

>5000 m elevation.

Distribution of lakes as per altitudinal range in Himalaya(high: 3000-4000m, higher: 4000-5000m and very high:> 5000 m).

Altitude-wise distribution of high altitude lakes

Sr.

No. Category

Altitude

range (m)

No. of

lakes

Area

(ha)

1. High Altitude 3000-4000 1300 8460

2. Higher Altitude 4000-5000 2642 100817

3. Very high Altitude >5000 761 16972

Total 4703 126249

State-wise distribution of high altitude lakes

Two states: Jammu and Kashmir and Arunachal

Pradesh harbour very large number of high altitude

lakes. Jammu and Kashmir has the highest share of

lakes. Number-wise, around 44.7% of lakes (2104

number) are found in this state with 87.24% share of

total area. Arunachal Pradesh with 1672 lakes

contributes 9.4% of area, indicating small size of the

lakes. Only 3 lakes are mapped in West Bengal state

with 82 ha area (contributing to 0.06% of total lake area).

Distribution of high altitude lakes in Himalayan states,India

State-wise distribution of high altitude lakes

Sr.No.

StateNo. oflakes

Lakearea(ha)

% Lakearea

1 Arunachal Pradesh 1672 11863 9.40

2 Himachal Pradesh 272 617 0.49

3 Jammu and Kashmir 2104 110131 87.23

4 Sikkim 534 3325 2.63

5 Uttarakhand 118 231 0.18

6 West Bengal 3 82 0.06

Total 4703 126249 100.00


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High Altitude lakes in various states (frozen, semi-frozen and liquid) as manifested on LISS-III imagery

INVENTORY AND ASSESSMENT OF WETLANDS IN Presence of aquatic vegetation is observed in many


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NORTH-EASTERN STATES :

Area estimates of various wetland categories for North-Eastern (N-E) states have been carried out using GISlayers encompassing wetland boundary, water-spread,aquatic vegetation and turbidity.

Total wetland area estimated is 1074254 ha (1.07Mha)that is around 4.1 per cent of the geographic area.Analysis of wetland status in terms of open water showedaround 57.2 % (614279 ha) and 52.2 % (560965 ha)during post-monsoon and pre-monsoon respectively.Aquatic vegetation (floating/emergent) occupies around5.8 % (62217 ha) and 10.4 % (112190 ha) area ofwetland during post- and pre-monsoon respectively.

In the N-E states, 8018 wetlands have been delineated.In addition, 11585 small wetlands (< 2.25 ha) are alsodemarcated as point feature. The most dominant type ofwetland is rivers/streams (857228 ha), occupying around79.8 per cent of wetland area. The other major wetlandtypes are lakes/ponds (91402 ha), waterlogged (63342ha), ox-bow lakes (15614 ha). Though the high altitudelakes (14472 ha) is of minor category, they have

significance in state of Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim.

Type-wise wetland distribution in N-E States

q g ywetland types. The area under aquatic vegetation issignificantly high during pre-monsoon than that of post-monsoon period. Qualitative turbidity analysis of the openwater varied from moderate to low turbidity.

Type-wise wetland distribution in NE states

Sr.No.

Wetland CategoryTotal

WetlandArea(ha)

% ofWetland

Area

1 Lake/Pond 91402 8.51

2Ox-bow lake / Cut-offmeander

15614 1.45



5 Waterlogged(Natural) 63342 5.90

6 River/Stream 857228 79.80

7 Reservoir/Barrage 10309 0.96

8 Tank/Pond 1580 0.15

9 Waterlogged(Man-made) 549 0.05


Sub-Total 1062669 98.92

Wetlands (


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under wetlands whereas Mizoram has 0nly 0.66 % area under wetlands.

State-wise wetland area in N-E statesArea in ha

Sr.

No.State/UT

GeographicArea

(sq. km.)

Wetland

Area

% oftotal

wetlandarea

% of stategeographic

area

Open water Aquatic Vegetation

Post-monsoon

Pre-monsoon

Post-monsoon

Pre-monsoon

1 Sikkim 7096 7477 0.70 1.05 7189 5035 7 7

2Arunachal

Pradesh83653 155728 14.50 1.86 66222 57516 6002 5924

3 Nagaland 16579 21544 2.01 1.30 20938 20650 7 604

4 Manipur 22327 63616 5.92 2.85 45304 39391 16756 23500

5 Mizoram 21087 13988 1.30 0.66 13799 13778 37 42

6 Tripura 11040 17542 1.63 1.59 9847 7023 1779 5232

7 Meghalaya 22420 29987 2.79 1.34 27912 27420 819 852

8 Assam 78438 764372 71.15 9.74 423068 390152 36817 76036

Total 262640 1074254 100.00 4.09 614279 560965 62224 112197

State-wise wetland distribution in N-E states

IMPORTANT WETLANDS OF INDIA


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The Wetland Ecosystem in India is spread over a wide range of varied climatic conditions, which is ranging from thewetlands in cold Jammu and Kashmir to hot and humid conditions in Peninsular India, thus there is a great diversity ofthese Wetlands. Many of these wetlands are unique from the point of biodiversity, scenic beauty, shelter of migratorybirds, resident avifauna etc. Under the conservation of Wetlands in India, numbers of wetlands have been recognized thatare a part of National Parks and Sanctuaries. Twenty-five wetlands have been declared as Ramsar Sites. Various

types of sanctuaries and parks like bird, wildlife, marine, and education have been notified in the country.

Maps of 150 selected important wetland sites of India were prepared with a 5 km buffer area. Sample wetland maps ofWular Lake, Jammu and Kashmir are shown below. Similar maps have been prepared for 150 wetland sites.

Wetland map - 5 km buffer area of Wular Lake IRS LISS-III FCC - 5 km buffer area of Wular Lake


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Bawlee Chor, Purbi Champaran, Bihar

Badiasicha bil, Darrang, Assam

Loktak lake, Manipur Pong Dam, Kangra District, Himachal Pradesh

Sandi Wildlife Sanctuary, Uttar Pradesh

Tirla main, Katihar district, BiharKoothakulam tank, Tamilnadu

Nal Sarovar, Gujarat


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For further details please contact:

Director

Space Applications Centre, ISROAmbawadi Vistar (P.O.)Ahmedabad 380015

Email: [email protected]

Cover: Part of Loktak Lake, Manipur

Back cover: Mangrove along a creek, Goa

AdviserMinistry of Environment and ForestsParyavaran BhavanCGO ComplexNew Delhi 110003

Date post:	05-Apr-2018
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