Delhi Confidential: Bhupender Yadav to meet officials in Geneva to push for 75 Ramsar sites in India

Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav will leave for Geneva on Wednesday to attend the International Labour Organisation’s annual conference. During his visit, the minister will be meeting officials of the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands. As a part of the Centre’s ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’, Yadav is looking for 75 Ramsar sites in India by August 15 this year, to coincide with 75 years of the country’s Independence. The accreditation of a wetland as a Ramsar site marks it as a site of international importance. India currently has 49 Ramsar sites. The Ministry has already sent proposals for 23 more to the Convention, and sent three more on Tuesday.

Remarkable feat: Minister of State for Railways Raosaheb Patil Dave took to social media to congratulate railway official Shreyas Hosur from the South Western Railway zone for finishing the Ironman Triathlon — one of the gruelling single-day races on the planet. Hosur finished the race, consisting of 3.8 km swimming in open waters, followed by 180 km on bike, and 42.2 km full-marathon distance run, in just 13 hours and 26 minutes. Held in Hamburg, Germany, the Ironman races are the most coveted among the triathletes.

Plea, ponder: An interesting application landed in Delhi Golf Course membership committees’ office from a club member, requesting that a live-in partner not be charged guest fee and that the partner be accorded the privileges of a spouse is given. In its examination, the Golf Course Committee has said that the membership sub-committee will examine the case and also seek legal opinion.

“The president was of the view that the Club’s Memorandum and Articles of Association be studied and a call may be taken if there is no violation of the norms. Further, it was requested to seek legal opinion in this regard,” it noted.