On the line of successful Project Tiger and Project Elephant, India will have two more similar conservation missions, Project Dolphin and Project Lion, with the initiatives to conserve these two species in a dedicated manner.
Daily Current Affairs Quiz 2020
Key-Points
Gangetic river dolphin, declared as a National Aquatic species in 2010, is a species of freshwater dolphins primarily found in the Ganges and Brahmaputra rivers and their tributaries in India, Bangladesh and Nepal.
At present, there are about 3,700 Gangetic river dolphins in the Indian river systems.
These dolphins are sighted along deep river reaches in Assam, Bihar, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.
The Project Dolphin, announced by the PM, will, however, cover both freshwater (river) and marine (oceanic) dolphins.
About Project Lion
Asiatic lions are found in protected areas and agro-pastoral landscape of Saurashtra, covering nine districts in Gujarat. Its current estimated population is 674. India has recorded a 29% increase in its population in the past five years — from 523 in 2015 to 674 in 2020.
The Project Lion will have many additional components including creation of new required infrastructure, use of technology, involvement of experts for conservation, providing world standard care and health management.
