“A close watch is being kept on the ghats of Ganga by the magistrates, police officials and block development officers to stop hunting and fishing of the mammals,” senior officials said.

Gangetic dolphin, a highly endangered species, was declared National Aquatic Animal at the meeting of National Ganga River Basic Authority in New Delhi on Monday.

Patna District Magistrate J.K. Sinha said that instructions from Chief Minister has been passed to senior officials, including sub-divisional officers, magistrates, police officers and block development officers to ensure close surveillance and act swiftly to stop hunting of the aquatic animal. “Schools will take steps to aware the students about the gangetic dolphin which would boost eco-tourism in the region,” he said.

Dolphins were found lying dead in Patna and Bhagalpur in the past.

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar had proposed naming dolphins national aquatic animal at the meeting which was approved by the authority, sources said.

Mr. Kumar said since tigers were a symbol of ecosystem in forests, the presence of river dolphin in a river system too signifies a healthy aquatic life in freshwaters of rivers.

Facing grave threats due to excessive pollution in Ganga and poaching, there are less than 2,000 dolphins left in the country, prompting International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), a forum of conservationists, NGOs and government agencies, to categorise it as an endangered species.

Gangetic dolphin is an endemic species of the Ganga, Brahmaputra and Meghna river systems, extending from the foot of the Himalayas to the tidal zone in India and Bangladesh.