UPSC Civil Services Model Paper 1

● Wular Lake is the largest freshwater lake in India.
● Wular is also winter home and a breeding ground to innumerable migratory birds .
● The lake is also one of the Kashmir Valley’s important tourist attractions.
● It is for all these and other various reasons that in 1990 Wular was designated as a Wetland of International Importance under the Ramsar Convention .
● As a large wetland, Wular constitutes an important ecosystem in the valley and supports a lot of biodiversities.
● Besides being a rich repository of Macrophytic vegetation , the lake plays an important role in the local economy.
It is an important fish habitat .
● The livelihood of thousands of fishermen and others depends upon the lake as it contributes sixty per cent to the total fish catch in the valley.
● Local villagers also harvest a type of grass from the lake as a raw material for use in the mat- making cottage industry besides procuring waterlily-like plants for animal fodder.
● They also harvest a major part of the valley’s water-nut produce, locally known as ‘Gaare’ (Singaras) from the lake