Question

Name the national aquatic animal of India

Answer 1

The Ganges River Dolphin or also called ‘Susu,’ is the National Aquatic Animal of India. It is one of the National Symbols of India. Gangetic Dolphins are found in the river systems of Ganga, Brahmaputra, Meghna and Karnaphuli- Sangu in Nepal, India and Bangladesh.

Reason for Ganges River Dolphin is called the National Aquatic Animal of India

• The reason to declare Ganges River Dolphin as the National Aquatic Animal of India was to save it from extinction.
• The Ganges Dolphin is seen as the reflector of the health of the Ganga River.
• The declaration was made in 2009 in the National Ganga River Basin Authority’s (NGRBA) first meeting.

Origin of Ganges River Dolphin

• The Ganges River Dolphins (Platanista Gangetica) were officially discovered in 1801.

• The original stretches where the National Aquatic Animal of India are found are

  (i)Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna River Systems and
  (ii)Karnaphuli-Sangu River Systems ( Nepal, India, and Bangladesh)