RAMESWARAM: The Wildlife Institute of India has organised the first ever 'marine mammal stranding response workshop' in the State in Rameswaram, and the three-day event was inaugurated on Monday.
The CAMPA Dugong team of the Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, will conduct the capacity-building workshop in collaboration with the Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI), Tamil Nadu State Forest Department and the Central Zoo Authority (CZA) for the forest department personnel deployed along India's coastline from Monday to Wednesday. The CAMPA- Dugong recovery programme funded the workshop under the Ministry of Environment Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC).
Tamil Nadu Principal Chief Conservator of Forests Shekhar Kumar Niraj inaugurated the workshop and said the programme had provided scientists, protected area resource managers, and veterinarian experts of the coastal states, a common platform to discuss current research and monitoring programmes on marine mammals and identify priority information requirements for stranding events.
The three-day workshop would witness various technical sessions, practical demonstration classes and discussions on possible interventions for marine mammal stranding. Emphasis will be given to developing a standard protocol for stranded marine mammals that are easy to follow. At the same time, the detailed step-by-step analysis will help frontline responders and researchers alike. The workshop aims to help State agencies to review capabilities and research activities to conserve marine mammals.
On the first day of the special workshop, scientists from Pondicherry university, OMCAR foundation and the Wildlife Institute of India conducted sessions about marine biodiversity and conservation in India, the Dugong recovery programme, introduction to common marine mammals of the country, the threats they face, and Marine Mammal Stranding Response - Experience from Palk Bay. Practical and field visit sessions will be taken up on the second and third days of the workshop.