In a bid to preserve Ganga ecology plus increase tourism in the area, dolphin safaris were started at six places including near Haiderpur Wetland in Ganga in Bijnor, as per a TOI report.??
It coincided with the Gangetic Dolphin Day and National Mission for Clean Ganga launched the ¡®Dolphin Jalaj Safari¡¯ at Bijnor, Brijghat, Prayagraj and Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, Kahalgaon (Bihar) and Bandel (West Bengal).?
¡°This is a unique initiative to integrate Gangetic dolphin and Ganga conservation with local livelihoods which is in line with the concept of Arth Ganga,¡± said NMCG director general Rajeev Ranjan Mishra as per TOI.?
The 'Ganga Praharis' are trained volunteers belonging to the local community.?
They work towards the cleanliness of the river and their job is to take tourists on boats to see the dolphins.?
October 5 is celebrated as ¡®Ganga River Dolphin Day¡¯ in India. It is so because, on this day in 2010, Ganga Dolphins were declared national aquatic animals.?
Conservation began in 2012 in a joint effort between WWF and the UP government. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on August 15 announced that the Centre shall release a detailed framework on conserving dolphins.?
It will be in the same manner as conservation schemes for tigers and elephants which come under ¡®Project Tiger¡¯ and ¡®Project Elephant¡¯.?
This is a good move and it is about time that people got to enjoy these beautiful animals in their natural habitat with no threat from humans.