Cases of poaching on the rise in the region, say experts
OUR SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT
Patna, Nov. 22: Poachers allegedly killed a dolphin — India’s national aquatic animal — in the Ganga, sending shockwaves among environmentalists.
The Manmohan Singh government conferred the ‘national’ honour on the fresh-water mammal as recently as October 5. The matter came to light after two motorboat operators — Krishna and Avinash — working with the state tourism development corporation, raised an alarm after spotting a group of fishermen dragging the dolphin out of the river near the collectorate ghat around noon yesterday.
The men fled after spotting the two operators. Krishna, Avinash and others who had gathered at the site after the duo’s cries failed to save the animal, by then badly injured and gasping for breath. Though the dolphin was released in water its carcass was found floating in the river after a while.
The zoology head at Patna Science College and an expert, R.K. Sinha, also known as Dolphin Sinha, yesterday’s incident was just the tip of the iceberg. He added the fresh-water mammal was poached regularly by fishermen for its meat.
“We have news that as many as five dolphins have been killed near Patna ghats in the past seven days,” Sinha said, adding: “Fishermen settled in makeshift huts behind the collectorate ghat have been engaged in poaching for some time now.”
District wildlife officers today lodged an FIR in this connection with Gandhi Maidan police station. “Investigation is on,” said Bihar chief wildlife warden, B.A. Khanna.
The carcass has been taken to the environmental science laboratory of Patna University and R.K. Sinha, also a member of Ganga River Basin Authority of India, is engaged in an autopsy.
The incident is learnt to have shocked Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar who launched a campaign to save the endangered species found only in the Ganga, the Brahmaputra and the Indus and their tributaries.
After the Centre declared dolphins as the national aquatic animal (after Nitish requested for the same), the chief minister wrote to all district magistrates and forest officers to ensure protection of the endangered species. In the state, there are only 200 dolphins left. The Union government is likely to unveil Project Dolphin to save the species that figures in Schedule-I of the Indian Wildlife Protection Act-1972.
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1091123/jsp/nation/story_11774028.jsp
Wednesday, 25 November 2009
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I don't see why freshwater dolphins are always killed. Dead ones are always found on shores (I guess because of poison)and fishermen always kill them for meat and pest control. It's very sad
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