Jose Kalathil
A Ganga Dolphin Census Survey will be done annually post-Monsoon and a Census Report be published every year. The first-ever integrated and coordinated survey with standard protocol would be taken up in the states on the main stem of Ganga and its major tributaries which are habitats of Ganga Dolphins and would be surveyed this year post–monsoon. This was decided by experts and ecologists at the conclusion of a two-day workshop here under the aegis of National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) in association with WWF-India.
Mentioning the objectives and Operationalisation of Ganga Dolphin Action Plan, Mr. Rajiv Ranjan Mishra, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Environment & Forests and Mission Director, NMCG expressed his concerns on expediting the efforts for conservation of Ganga Dolphins. One of the key objectives of National Ganga River Basin Authority (NGRBA) is to ensure a clean and healthy Ganga. Ganga Dolphin has been the primary species for conservation and a crucial indicator of the health of River Ganga.”
Mr. Ravi Singh, CEO & Secretary General, WWF-India, Prof. R. K. Sinha, NGRBA expert member, Prof. Sunil Choudhary, VBREC, Prof. Vinod Tare, Convenor of IIT Consortium on GRBMP, Dr. Genevieve Connors of the World Bank and Mr. Shiv Pal Singh, Joint Director (Wildlife), Ministry of Environment & Forests also raised various issues and concerns on different aspects of Ganga Dolphin Conservation efforts on the ground.
“Firstly, many riverine communities are linked to the rivers, and it is important to engage them in conservation of the Ganga Dolphin, thereby making them active agents of change. Most of us are aware of the challenges posed to the Ganga Dolphin’s habitat. We have to channelize our technical capabilities to conservation of this species”, said Mr. Ravi Singh, CEO & Secretary General, WWF-India.
Threats and challenges posed to the national aquatic animal, their population status surveys, survey protocol standardisation, methodology, threat assessment, communities reserves and community involvement, rescue and rehabilitation, capacity building, education and awareness, critical water flows, commercial fishing and sand mining, etc., were discussed threadbare and timelines were chalked out for taking up the operationalisation of GDAP. The experts also contemplated on identification and declaration of critical Dolphin stretches as protected areas along with developing management plans for existing Dolphin sanctuaries and community-led Dolphin conservation programme.
Action plan
All the Forest Departments of the Ganga basin states will establish a decentralised interpretation centre on Dolphin conservation at critical locations to spread awareness about the Ganges Dolphin. A Dolphin communication and outreach plan will also be developed. A call centre system for ‘alert and rescue’ will also be set up by State Forest Departments and fishermen will be trained for immediate release accidental catches of Ganga Dolphins.
Endangered species
Ganga Dolphin has been categorised as an endangered species not only in the Schedule I of the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972, in Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) but also in Appendix II of the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) and is placed as endangered on the Red List of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN).
