India has designated 26 new wetland sites under the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance, bringing its total to 100 Ramsar sites — the largest national tally of any country in the world and a significant milestone in India's biodiversity conservation commitment.

The new designations include the Naliya Salt Marshes of Gujarat, which support the largest breeding population of Lesser Flamingoes in South Asia; the Deban Floodplains of Arunachal Pradesh, home to the endangered Gangetic river dolphin; the Bhoj Wetlands complex of Madhya Pradesh; and the Bhitarkanika Mangroves extension in Odisha.

Ramsar designation provides a framework for international cooperation and funding for wetland management, though the practical protection it confers depends on complementary national legislation — a gap that conservationists have identified as a weakness in India's wetland protection architecture.

The Environment Ministry has introduced a Wetlands Conservation and Management Rules amendment requiring state governments to develop specific wetland management plans and prohibit encroachment within 500 metres of designated sites. Implementation monitoring remains the primary challenge.