A forest department official said on Sunday that the Jharkhand government has proposed two stretches of the Ganga in Sahibganj district for 'dolphin safari' to boost eco-tourism and promote the conservation of the country's national aquatic animal.
He predicts that the proposed stretches at Singhidalan in Rajmahal and Ojhatoli in Sahibganj will be designated as "dolphin tourism sites."
According to Sahibganj divisional forest officer (DFO) Manish Tiwary, the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has recently sought proposals from the state government for an eco-tourism project in two locations: Sahibganj and Rajmahal.
Importance of this project
The presence of dolphins, as well as economic and tourism opportunities, were taken into account when choosing the sites, according to the official." The proposed sites will aid in better species monitoring and patrolling, as well as boosting local employment through tourism," he said.
According to the official, the two sites could be linked to the Centre's 'Dolphin Jalaj Safari' project.
What is the 'Dolphin Jalaj Safari' project?
The safari project was launched by the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) in October 2020 in six locations across the country: Bijnor, Brijghat, Prayagraj, and Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, Kahalgaon in Bihar, and Bandel in West Bengal.
Dolphins can be found in an 83-kilometer stretch of the Ganga in Jharkhand's Sahibganj district, which is protected under Schedule 1 of the Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972. In January of this year, the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) surveyed the Ganga stretch in Jharkhand and discovered 81 dolphins.
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