UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Second Rangewide Estimation of Riverine and Estuarine Dolphins in India starts from Bijnor

Q1. Project Dolphin, announced in 2020, is best described as which one of the following?

  • A. An umbrella programme for the conservation of both riverine and marine dolphins and associated cetaceans
  • B. A scheme confined exclusively to the Ganges River Dolphin in the Ganga main stem
  • C. A marine-only cetacean programme restricted to India's territorial waters and Lakshadweep
  • D. A captive-breeding and translocation programme for endangered freshwater turtles and dolphins

Q2. With reference to Project Dolphin, consider the following statements: 1. It was announced by the Prime Minister on 15 August 2020 from the Red Fort. 2. Its scope covers both riverine and marine dolphins. 3. It is implemented by the Ministry of Jal Shakti. 4. It was announced on Independence Day. Which of the above are correctly identified?

  1. It was announced by the Prime Minister on 15 August 2020 from the Red Fort.
  2. Its scope covers both riverine and marine dolphins.
  3. It is implemented by the Ministry of Jal Shakti.
  4. It was announced on Independence Day.
  • A. 1, 2 and 4
  • B. 1 and 3 only
  • C. 2, 3 and 4
  • D. 1, 2, 3 and 4

Q3. With reference to India's National Aquatic Animal, which one of the following statements is correct?

  • A. The Ganges River Dolphin was declared the National Aquatic Animal at the first meeting of the National Ganga River Basin Authority in 2009
  • B. The Gharial was declared the National Aquatic Animal at the first meeting of the National Ganga River Basin Authority in 2009
  • C. The Indus River Dolphin was declared the National Aquatic Animal under Project Dolphin in 2020
  • D. The Ganges River Dolphin was declared the National Aquatic Animal when it was placed in Schedule I of the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972

Q4. The River Dolphin was declared India's National Aquatic Animal at which numbered meeting of the National Ganga River Basin Authority (NGRBA)?

  • A. The first meeting
  • B. The second meeting
  • C. The third meeting
  • D. The seventh meeting

Q5. The Wild Life (Protection) Amendment Act, 2022 empowered which one of the following forces with enforcement powers relevant to protection of aquatic wildlife at sea?

  • A. Indian Coast Guard
  • B. Indian Navy
  • C. Border Security Force
  • D. Central Industrial Security Force

Q6. Following the December 2022 amendment to the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972, how many distinct species of river dolphin are recognised and listed in Schedule I?

  • A. One
  • B. Two
  • C. Three
  • D. Four

Q7. The first rangewide estimation of riverine dolphins in India (2021-23), whose results were released in 2025, put the estimated population at approximately how many dolphins?

  • A. 3,150
  • B. 6,327
  • C. 8,500
  • D. 4,391

Q8. The second rangewide estimation of riverine and estuarine dolphins, flagged off from Bijnor, was rolled out under the authority of which one of the following?

  • A. Ministry of Environ, Forest and Climate Change
  • B. Ministry of Jal Shakti
  • C. Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying
  • D. NITI Aayog

Q9. Consider the following statements comparing the two rounds of rangewide dolphin estimation: 1. Both the first and the second rounds are coordinated by the Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun. 2. Unlike the first round, the second round additionally assesses the estuarine Irrawaddy dolphin. 3. The second round is coordinated by the Zoological Survey of India, replacing the Wildlife Institute of India. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. Both the first and the second rounds are coordinated by the Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun.
  2. Unlike the first round, the second round additionally assesses the estuarine Irrawaddy dolphin.
  3. The second round is coordinated by the Zoological Survey of India, replacing the Wildlife Institute of India.
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 2 and 3 only
  • C. 1 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3

Q10. The Irrawaddy dolphin, newly included in the second rangewide estimation, is best characterised by which one of the following?

  • A. An estuarine and coastal-lagoon dolphin, surveyed in habitats such as the Sundarbans and Odisha (Chilika)
  • B. A strictly riverine dolphin whose only Indian population survives in the Beas
  • C. A regional population that is taxonomically the same species as the Ganges River Dolphin
  • D. A deep-water oceanic dolphin found mainly off the Lakshadweep archipelago

Q11. Within the Namami Gange Programme, the Ganges River Dolphin is described as an 'indicator species'. In this context, the term 'indicator species' means which one of the following?

  • A. A species whose presence and abundance reflect the overall ecological health of the river system
  • B. The single most numerous aquatic species inhabiting the Ganga
  • C. A species used to mark the geographical source and course of the river
  • D. A top predator that alone regulates the entire fish population of the river