Dolphin DILEMMA!

A crucial article to highlight the significance, and plight of Our riverine friends.

- RAHUL ROHITASHWA AND D.N. CHAUDHARY

THE river Ganga or Ganges is among the most sacred rivers of India. Starting from the Gomukh glacier in the Western Himalayas it flows down across northern India all the way to Bangladesh. It empties into the Bay of Bengal in Gangasagar where the river Ganga meets the sea which is also an important religious pilgrimage of the Hindus. Nearly 80% of the Ganges River basin is in India, the rest is in Nepal, China and Bangladesh. The Gangetic river basin is not only of Asia’s but also the world’s most densely-populated regions. Its river basin is more than 1 million sq. km, and home to almost 650 million people. This is the reason why it earned the sobriquet Plains of the Ganges, which is an important geographical region of the Indian subcontinent.

The Gangetic river basin not only supports human life but is also home to many wild species such as the Ganges River Dolphin (Platinista gangetica), Gharial (Gavialis gangeticus), Golden Mahseer (Tor putitora), Mugger or Indian marsh Crocodile (Crocodylus palustris),Gangetic Shark (Glyphis gangeticus), Gangetic Stingray (Himantura fluviatilis), Smooth-coated Otter (Lutrogale perspicillata) and the critically endangered Red-crowned Roof Turtle (Batagur kachuga).

The mighty Ganges river is the lifeline of the millions of people of northern India, not only providing food and fodder for them but in turn facing pollution, dams and barrages, over-fishing practices, deforestation, siltation and excess use of its water in agricultural practices, which has affected the flow and health of this vital river. These ill practices have severely affected the delicate riverine eco-system and has negatively impacted the precious wildlife species like the Gangetic dolphins.