NEW DELHI: India has released its first-ever estimation report on riverine dolphins, revealing a total of 6,327 dolphins. This includes 6,324 Ganges River dolphins and three Indus River dolphins.
The Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has designated the Chambal River Conservation Zone as a Dolphin Conservation Zone to implement targeted protection efforts.
Additionally, India has tagged 12 near-extinct Great Indian Bustard birds for the first time to study their reproductive behaviours.
Project Dolphin was launched on 15 August 2020, with Rs 4.8 crore allocated under the CSS: Development of Wildlife Habitats.
With local participation, it has conducted the world’s largest freshwater survey, covering 8507 km across eight states, 28 rivers by boat, and 30 rivers by road. The report doesn’t reveal the number of marine dolphins.
In December last year, India achieved a ground-breaking milestone by successfully satellite-tagging the first-ever Ganges River Dolphin (Platanista gangetica) in Assam under Project Dolphin.
The report identified key dolphin hotspot states as Assam, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, and Lakshadweep. The MoEFCC has prepared a Comprehensive Action Plan (2022-2047) and shared it with relevant Ministries for execution. The plan focuses on species protection, habitat improvement, monitoring, patrolling, and awareness programs.
In October 2023, India participated in discussions on the Global Declaration for River Dolphins in Bogota, Colombia, where it reiterated its commitment to global dolphin conservation.
A 200 km stretch in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh has been recommended for designation as a Dolphin Conservation Zone for targeted protection efforts.
Besides, India has also achieved a milestone in conserving the Great Indian Bustard (GIB). For the first time, 12 Great Indian Bustards were tagged - two in Gujarat and 10 in Rajasthan, providing key insights into their reproductive behaviour.
The grassland bird is near-to-extinct, and its habitat is spread across Rajasthan and Gujarat. The major threats emerged due to an electric grid line passing across the habitats.
Breeding Success at State-of-the-Art Centers Two state-of-the-art conservation breeding Centers in Jaisalmer now house 44 Great Indian Bustards, 30 of which were hatched from wild-laid eggs and 14 from captive-reared birds.