River dolphins of Assam in danger

 STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: The State Government declared the river dolphin as the state aquatic animal in 2008 but stopped short of doing enough for the preservation of the animal. The situation has come to such a pass that the population of river dolphins in the state has been falling drastically.

Most river dolphins get caught in fishermen’s nets and die. A section of the population, driven by the myth that the oil extracted from river dolphins is a good ointment to check orthopedic problems, is on the hunt to catch the meek aquatic animal. The rampant use of machines to extract sand from riverbeds, the main habitats of river dolphins, also leads to a fall in their population. Big dams on the upstream of the Brahmaputra also pose a threat to the survival of river dolphins.

According to official data, 80 river dolphins have died, 79 of them unnaturally, in the rivers of the state since 2008.

Apart from the Brahmaputra, the Subansiri in Upper Assam, the Kulsi in Kamrup, and the Kushiara in the Barak Valley have shoals of river dolphins. Citing the report of a survey conducted by the Wildlife Institute of India, Forest Minister Chandra Mohan Patowary said that river dolphins are almost extinct in the Barak Valley. In the Kulsi and Subansiri rivers, too, the population of the state aquatic animal has fallen drastically.

According to sources, the rampant use of machines to collect sand from the riverbed of the Kulsi recently led to the deaths of three river dolphins within a week. The local public and nature lovers took to the streets, demanding a ban on collecting sand from the habitats of river dolphins.

In 2005, the population of river dolphins in the Kulsi River was 27, and it was 18 in 2020.

Interestingly, in 2016, the district authority also declared river dolphins the Guwahati City Animal after a public survey. However, the authorities stopped short of doing anything tangible for the animal’s protection.

According to Minister Patowary, the government conducts regular censuses of dolphins, besides studies on their habitats in the rivers. The government has also set up a dolphin conservation network involving youths from nearby areas with dolphin habitats. He said that the government also carries out an awareness drive against killing dolphins for their oil. Efforts are on to find a scientific solution to the deaths of dolphins caught in fishermen’s nets, he said.

An expert on dolphin conservation said, “The Brahmaputra river system remains a major stronghold for river dolphins. If the government does not take adequate measures for their preservation, they will certainly go extinct in the state. Threats to the survival of river dolphins in the state loom large for various reasons.”

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