Kopra Reservoir: Chhattisgarh’s First Ramsar Site Explained
Why in the news
Kopra Reservoir was highlighted as a national model of local biodiversity care around the 2026 International Day for Biological Diversity, whose theme was “Local Action, Global Impact”.
Key facts
- Location: Bilaspur district, Chhattisgarh.
- Status: the state’s first Ramsar Site, listed in 2025.
- Origin: artificial reservoir for irrigation and fish farming, now a self-sustaining wetland.
- Managed with help from local villages and panchayats.
Why Kopra matters
| Role | Detail |
|---|---|
| Flyway stopover | Thousands of long-distance migratory birds stop or winter here on Central Indian routes |
| Food web | Fish, macro-invertebrates and foraging material for birds |
| Micro-habitats | Open water, shallow marsh and vegetation beds for nesting and roosting |
| Bio-fencing | Living green barriers shield breeding grounds from people and cattle |
| Water regulation | Large groundwater recharge basin that keeps the water table up for nearby farms |
Background
- Bio-fencing: planting thorny shrubs, hedges or fast-growing trees as a natural boundary; cheaper, greener and self-renewing compared with concrete or wire, and also gives habitat, shade, carbon storage, fodder or fruit.
- Ramsar Convention: treaty on wetland conservation and wise use; signed 2 February 1971, in force 1975; secretariat hosted by IUCN in Gland, Switzerland; pillars are wise use, designation of sites and international cooperation. World Wetlands Day is 2 February.
- India joined in 1982; first sites were Chilika Lake (Odisha) and Keoladeo National Park (Rajasthan).
- India has over 89 Ramsar Sites as of 2024, the largest network in Asia.
- Policy tools: National Wetlands Conservation Programme, Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules 2017, and Amrit Dharohar (2023) for community participation, ecotourism and carbon stock at Ramsar sites.
Exam angle
- Kopra: Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh; 2025 Ramsar listing.
- International Day for Biological Diversity: 22 May; World Wetlands Day: 2 February.
- Related terms: bio-fencing, flyway, Amrit Dharohar.