Government notifies Ganges dolphin as national aquatic animal
May 18th, 2010 - 9:35 pm ICT by IANSNew Delhi, May 18 (IANS) The critically-endangered Ganges river dolphin has been notified as India’s national aquatic animal, Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh said Tuesday.
“By giving the sub-species the national aquatic animal status, we hope to raise public awareness and support, especially among the younger generation, for its conservation and protection,” Ramesh said.
The Ganges river dolphin inhabits the Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna and Karnaphuli-Sangu river systems of Nepal, India and Bangladesh. It is estimated that their total population is around 2,000.
“In India, the Ganges river dolphin is threatened by river water pollution and siltation, accidental entanglement in fishing nets, and poaching for their oil. In addition, alterations to the rivers in the form of barrages and dams are separating the population,” he said.
Various organisations, including the World Wide Fund for Nature-India (WWF-India) in Uttar Pradesh, have initiated programmes for conservation and re-introduction of the river dolphin.
Dolphins are among one of the oldest creatures in the world along with some species of turtles, crocodiles and sharks. Ganges river dolphins are generally blind and catch their prey in a unique manner. They emit an ultrasonic sound which reaches the prey. The dolphin then registers this image in its brain and subsequently catches hold of its prey.
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- Bihar to set up dolphin conservation task force - Apr 21, 2011
- World Bank to help save Ganga dolphins - Jan 12, 2011
- Dolphin sanctuary suffers from funds crunch - Aug 21, 2010
- Dolphin 'mitras', a helping hand for Ganges river dolphins - May 13, 2010
- Bihar to launch awareness campaign for dolphins - May 03, 2010
- Bihar task force report on Ganga dolphins soon - Jul 20, 2011
- Activists cry foul over Ganges dolphin poaching - Apr 30, 2010
- Call goes out to save the Ganges Dolphin - Feb 24, 2010
- Draft action plan readied to conserve Ganges dolphins - Jun 05, 2010
- Bangladesh Sundarbans to have dolphin sanctuaries - Nov 03, 2011
- Pesticides poisoning Ganges river dolphins - Mar 31, 2010
- Dolphin found dead in Patna - Jun 03, 2010
Tags: animal environment, aquatic animal, barrages, brahmaputra, entanglement, environment minister, fishing nets, ganges river, ganges river dolphin, ganges river dolphins, jairam ramesh, meghna, national aquatic, river water, sangu river, species of turtles, total population, ultrasonic sound, water pollution, wwf india