Content

• Wetlands as a national public good
• Budget 2026–27 & Capex-led Growth

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Wetlands as a national public good

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Why in News — World Wetlands Day 2026 ?

Global & Indian Context

• World Wetlands Day 2026 themed “Wetlands and traditional knowledge” highlights community-led conservation; relevant for India where cultural practices historically sustained tanks, floodplains, mangroves, and village ponds.
• Theme gains relevance amid rapid wetland loss, climate risks, and water stress, positioning wetlands as nature-based solutions for water security, disaster resilience, biodiversity conservation, and livelihood sustainability.

Relevance

GS I — Geography & Society

• Wetlands regulate floods, groundwater, and microclimate, making them critical for questions on Indian physical geography, resource distribution, and human–environment interaction.
• Community-managed tanks, fisheries, and cultural linkages help enrich answers on society–environment relations and traditional knowledge systems.

GS III — Environment & Disaster Management

• Wetlands as nature-based solutions for floods, droughts, and climate adaptation directly relevant for environment, conservation, and disaster-risk-reduction themes.
• Links to biodiversity conservation, pollution control, and sustainable development.

Practice Question

• “Wetlands are ecological assets but governance liabilities.” Examine with reference to India’s conservation framework and discuss the role of traditional knowledge in wetland conservation in India.(250 Words)

Basics — Understanding Wetlands

Definition & Types

• Wetlands are ecosystems where land remains saturated with water seasonally or permanently, including marshes, lakes, mangroves, floodplains, lagoons, and human-made tanks supporting rich biodiversity and hydrological functions.
• India hosts diverse wetlands—freshwater, coastal, riparian, urban, and high-altitude systems—providing ecological services across climatic zones, from Himalayas to coastal deltas.

Ecological Functions

• Wetlands regulate hydrological cycles by storing floodwater, recharging groundwater, filtering pollutants, stabilising shorelines, and moderating microclimates, making them critical natural infrastructure for climate adaptation.
• They serve as biodiversity hotspots supporting fish, migratory birds, amphibians, and aquatic flora, contributing to food security, nutrient cycling, and genetic diversity conservation.

Traditional Knowledge & Community Linkages

Indigenous Systems

• Tamil Nadu’s kulam tank cascades historically ensured irrigation, groundwater recharge, and drought resilience through community maintenance, illustrating decentralised water governance embedded within local ecological knowledge.
• Kerala’s kenis in Wayanad, over two centuries old, demonstrate sustainable groundwater access systems supporting drinking needs, rituals, and cultural continuity without ecological over-extraction.
• Andhra Pradesh’s wetland-linked fishing traditions show how livelihoods evolved in harmony with seasonal hydrology, sustaining both income and aquatic biodiversity through customary norms and community regulation.

Cultural–Economic Value

• Wetlands function simultaneously as ecology, economy, and heritage, supporting agriculture, fisheries, fodder, and crafts while reinforcing cultural identity and social cohesion in rural landscapes.

Policy & Legal Framework

Regulatory Architecture

• Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules, 2017 provide identification, notification, and regulation mechanisms restricting reclamation, pollution, and encroachment through State Wetland Authorities.
• NPCA guidelines promote science-based planning, monitoring, and outcome-oriented management, integrating ecological restoration with livelihood considerations.
• Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) norms safeguard coastal wetlands like mangroves and lagoons by regulating development and maintaining ecological buffers.
• India’s 98 Ramsar Sites entail global recognition and obligations for “wise use,” ecological character maintenance, and periodic reporting.

Data & Evidence

Status Trends

• Nearly 40% of India’s wetlands lost in three decades due to urbanisation, infrastructure, and land conversion, indicating large-scale ecological transformation.
• Around 50% of remaining wetlands show degradation from pollution, altered hydrology, and encroachments, reducing ecosystem service delivery.

Key Challenges

Land & Hydrology Pressures

• Encroachment, real estate expansion, and road networks convert wetlands into built-up areas, while outdated cadastral maps obscure original wetland boundaries and legal status.
• Dams, embankments, channelisation, sand mining, and groundwater overuse disrupt natural flow regimes, undermining wetland hydrology and ecological character.

Pollution & Climate Risks

• Untreated sewage, industrial effluents, agricultural runoff, and solid waste cause eutrophication, biodiversity collapse, and loss of flood-buffering capacity.
• Coastal wetlands face combined stress from sea-level rise, cyclones, tourism, ports, and aquaculture, limiting natural inland migration space.

Institutional Constraints

• State Wetland Authorities often face staffing, funding, and skill shortages in hydrology, GIS, ecology, and legal enforcement, weakening implementation quality.

Governance Gaps

Implementation Deficit

• India’s challenge lies less in legal absence and more in weak enforcement, fragmented coordination, and project-driven approaches rather than long-term ecosystem management programmes.
• Departmental silos prevent watershed-scale governance, ignoring ecological connectivity between wetlands, rivers, and catchments.

Way Forward

Regulatory & Planning Measures

• Ensure clear notification and demarcation with public maps, participatory ground-truthing, and grievance mechanisms to reduce disputes and encroachments.
• Integrate wetlands into basin-scale planning by restoring feeder channels, regulating extraction, and protecting catchments.

Pollution & Urban Management

• Treat wastewater before discharge; wetlands should not replace sewage plants. Constructed wetlands may complement but not substitute primary treatment.
• Recognise urban wetlands as flood buffers and blue-green infrastructure in city master plans.

Capacity & Technology

• Launch a national capacity mission for wetland managers in hydrology, restoration ecology, GIS, and community governance.
• Use remote sensing, drones, and time-series analytics for real-time monitoring of encroachment and vegetation changes.

Community & Knowledge Integration

• Combine traditional ecological knowledge with modern science to enhance compliance, restoration success, and local stewardship.

RAMSAR SITES IN INDIA

Total: 98 Sites | 13.6 lakh+ hectares

Andhra Pradesh (1)

• Kolleru Lake

Assam (1)

• Deepor Beel

Bihar (6)

• Gogabeel Lake

• Gokul Reservoir

• Kanwar Lake (Asia’s largest oxbow lake)

• Nagi Bird Sanctuary

• Nakti Lake

• Udaypur Lake

Chhattisgarh (1)

• Kopra Reservoir

Goa (1)

• Nanda Lake

Gujarat (5)

• Chhari-Dhand

• Khijadiya

• Nalsarovar (largest wetland bird sanctuary in Gujarat)

• Thol Lake

• Wadhvana Wetland

Haryana (2)

• Sultanpur National Park

• Bhindawas Wildlife Sanctuary

Himachal Pradesh (3)

• Chandra Taal (high-altitude lake)

• Pong Dam Lake

• Renuka Lake

Jammu & Kashmir (5)

• Hokersar Wetland

• Hygam Wetland

• Shallabugh Wetland

• Mansar–Surinsar

• Wular Lake (one of India’s largest freshwater lakes)

Jharkhand (1)

• Udhwa Lake

Karnataka (4)

• Ranganathittu Bird Sanctuary

• Ankasamudra Bird Conservation Reserve

• Aghanashini Estuary (free-flowing river estuary – rare case)

• Magadi Kere Conservation Reserve

Kerala (3)

• Ashtamudi Wetland

• Sasthamkotta Lake (largest freshwater lake in Kerala)

• Vembanad-Kol Wetland

Ladakh (2)

• Tso Kar

• Tsomoriri (high-altitude Ramsar sites – climate sensitive)

Madhya Pradesh (5)

• Bhoj Wetland

• Sakhya Sagar

• Sirpur Lake

• Yashwant Sagar

• Tawa Reservoir

Maharashtra (3)

• Lonar Lake (meteorite crater lake – geology favourite)

• Nandur Madhameshwar

• Thane Creek (urban wetland example)

Manipur (1)

• Loktak Lake (phumdis – floating vegetation concept)

Mizoram (1)

• Pala Wetland

Odisha (6)

• Ansupa Lake

• Bhitarkanika Mangroves

• Chilika Lake (India’s largest brackish lagoon)

• Hirakud Reservoir

• Satkosia Gorge

• Tampara Lake

Punjab (6)

• Beas Conservation Reserve

• Harike Wetland

• Kanjli Wetland

• Keshopur-Miani Community Reserve

• Nangal Wildlife Sanctuary

• Ropar Wetland

Rajasthan (5)

• Keoladeo National Park (UNESCO site)

• Sambhar Lake (largest inland salt lake)

• Khichan Wetland

• Menar Wetland Complex

• Siliserh Lake

Sikkim (1)

• Khecheopalri Wetland (sacred lake)

Tamil Nadu (20)

• Chitrangudi Bird Sanctuary

• Gulf of Mannar Marine Biosphere Reserve (marine Ramsar – rare)

• Kanjirankulam

• Karaivetti

• Karikili

• Koonthankulam

• Longwood Shola

• Pallikarnai Marsh (urban wetland example)

• Pichavaram Mangrove

• Point Calimere

• Suchindram-Theroor Complex

• Udhayamarthandapuram

• Vadavur

• Vedanthangal (oldest bird sanctuary in India)

• Vellode

• Vembannur Complex

• Nanjarayan

• Kazhuveli

• Sakkarakottai

• Therthangal

Tripura (1)

• Rudrasagar Lake

Uttar Pradesh (11)

• Patna Bird Sanctuary

• Bakhira Sanctuary

• Haiderpur Wetland

• Nawabganj

• Parvati Arga

• Saman

• Samaspur

• Sandi

• Sarsai Nawar

• Sur Sarovar

• Upper Ganga River (riverine Ramsar site – rare category)

Uttarakhand (1)

• Asan Barrage

West Bengal (2)

• East Kolkata Wetlands (sewage-fed aquaculture model – case study)

• Sundarban Wetland (mangrove ecosystem)

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Budget 2026–27 & Capex-led Growth

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Why in News ?

Fiscal Signal

• Budget 2026–27 guides fiscal deficit to 4.3% of GDP and raises public capex to ₹12.2 lakh crore, signalling shift from pandemic relief to infrastructure-led, borrowing-supported growth strategy.
• Capex and MSME support now framed as structural growth pillars rather than temporary stimulus, aligning with long-term vision of Viksit Bharat and productivity-led expansion.

Relevance

GS III — Indian Economy

• Capex-led growth model directly fits topics of fiscal policy, public expenditure, growth strategy, and infrastructure financing.
• Employment elasticity and jobless growth are core to questions on inclusive growth and labour markets.

GS II — Governance

• Fiscal prioritisation shows policy trade-offs between growth, welfare, and employment—useful for governance and policy-design answers.

Practice Question

• What is employment elasticity? Discuss its relevance in evaluating growth quality.(250 Words)

Basics — Capex-led Growth Model

What is Capital Expenditure (Capex)?

• Capex refers to government spending on asset creation—roads, railways, logistics, energy, digital infrastructure—that enhances long-term productive capacity instead of short-term consumption support.
• Theoretical rationale: capex crowds in private investment, raises productivity, and generates jobs through multiplier effects across construction, manufacturing, and services.

Post-Pandemic Fiscal Shift

• Since 2020–21, capex moved from counter-cyclical tool to core fiscal doctrine, becoming primary driver of growth, even during periods of fiscal consolidation.
• Capex share in total expenditure rose from ~12% (2020–21) to over 22% recently, indicating structural reorientation toward asset-led growth.

Economic Analysis — Growth vs Employment

Labour Market Disconnect

• Despite capex surge, youth NEET rate (15–29 years) remains 23–25%, meaning nearly one-fourth of youth are outside education, employment, or training.
• Indicates weak labour absorption even as GDP and capital formation accelerate, pointing to a jobless or job-light growth pattern.

Employment Elasticity Trends

• Construction elasticity fell from 0.59 (2011–20) to 0.42 (2021–24), implying each rupee of infrastructure now generates fewer jobs than before.
• Agriculture elasticity rose from 0.04 to 1.51, showing labour returning to low-productivity farming instead of exiting it—sign of distress-driven fallback.

Structural Issues

Capital Intensity Bias

• Current capex configuration favours capital-intensive sectors, where productivity rises but labour demand grows slowly, weakening employment multipliers.
• Gap between net value added per worker and wages shows productivity gains captured more as profits than labour income.

Industrial Structure Constraints

• Annual Survey of Industries shows most factories employ under 100 workers; small firms dominate numerically but contribute limited output and struggle to scale.
• Large firms capture value from new infrastructure networks but remain labour-light and automation-driven.

Dual Economy Concern

Emerging Pattern

• Economy exhibits dualism: a capital-intensive formal sector driving GDP growth alongside a large informal sector absorbing surplus labour with low productivity.
• Informality, self-employment, and disguised agricultural labour act as buffers for inadequate formal job creation.

Governance & Policy Perspective

Fiscal Doctrine Shift

• Employment increasingly treated as by-product of growth rather than explicit policy target, reflecting prioritisation of macro-stability and capital formation.
• Inclusion depends on skills, urban location, and automation compatibility, marginalising low-skilled labour.

Data & Evidence

Key Numbers

• Fiscal deficit target: 4.3% of GDP.
• Public capex: ₹12.2 lakh crore.
• Capex share: ~12% → 22% of expenditure.
• Youth NEET: 23–25%.
• Construction elasticity: 0.59 → 0.42.
• Agriculture elasticity: 0.04 → 1.51.

Challenges

Development Risks

• Persistent jobless growth risks demographic dividend turning into demographic burden.
• Wage stagnation may suppress consumption demand, weakening long-term growth sustainability.
• Labour displacement into informality reduces tax base and social security coverage.

Way Forward

Policy Corrections

• Complement capex with labour-intensive manufacturing push—textiles, food processing, electronics assembly.
• Align industrial policy with employment-linked incentives, not just production-linked incentives.
• Expand skilling aligned to infra, green jobs, and local manufacturing clusters.
• Strengthen MSME formalisation, credit access, and technology adoption.