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As global delegates prepare for Ramsar COP15, Delhi's Jharoda wetland urgently needs attention.
Once a thriving aquatic habitat, it has been filled with waste over the past two years, leading to its decline.
Despite Wetland Rules enacted in 2020, no wetlands in Delhi have been officially notified, highlighting a global issue of neglect and destruction.
As delegates from across the world converge on the resort town of Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe from July 23-31 for the the Ramsar Convention’s 15th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP15) to discuss the future of the world’s wetlands, a wetland in the national capital is crying out for attention.
The Jharoda wetland is (or used to be) located near the Jharoda Majra Metro Station, about a kilometre from the Yamuna Biodiversity Park. It was a thriving habitat for aquatic life.
But then, it began to die.
Over the past two years, the wetland has been filled with soil and other inert waste, levelling it up.
According to a report in the Times of India, the waste has been dumped in the wetland mostly at nighttime.
The TOI report also noted that the Municipal Corporation of Delhi and the Delhi Development Authority shifted blame instead of taking responsibility.
The Wetland Rules came into force in 2020. However, not a single wetland in the national capital has been officially notified, according to the TOI.
The fate of the Jharoda wetland is similar to its counterparts worldwide that have already been destroyed or constantly face the threat of destruction at the hands of those who either do not know or do not appreciate the ecosystem services that they provide.