Union Water Resources Minister Uma Bharti might have claimed in Lok Sabha that Gangetic Dolphins got blind because of pollution but her ministry does not have any scientific basis to buttress the claim. Bharti, Minister for Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation, had on August 4 told Lok Sabha, "Dolphins got blind because of pollution...Dolphins got blind in Ganga because they could not see in the river because of pollution so they had to develop other senses to survive.
"Once ascertained (of the water quality), we will leave dolphins with eye sight in the river and if they do not get blind, it can be assumed that the river got vitalised," she had said. An RTI query by Abhishek Shukla sought to know from the ministry if it had any scientific study to show that the Gangetic dolphins lost their vision because of pollution.
The applicant also inquired if the ministry plans to leave some species of dolphins having vision in Ganga to determine if the river has regained its vitality.
The ministry said they "do not have scientific study" to show that dolphins lost their vision because of pollution in the river Ganga.
"The Ministry does not have any immediate plan to release dolphins (with eyes or vision) in Ganga," said K P Sapra, Under Secretary in the Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation and National Mission for Clean Ganga.
The mammal species has no eye lens but it uses its eye to locate itself. It also cannot breathe in the water and must surface every 3-120 seconds.
The RTI applicant also sought to know if there is a research or scientific study to show that survival of dolphins with vision in river Ganga would mean improvement of water quality, as claimed by Bharti, to which the Ministry replied in negative.
Independent experts on dolphins, who do not wish to come on record, have also opined that there is no scientific study to show how the mammal species lost its vision. They say one reason can be the muddy water of Ganga, which makes it difficult to see, but these are only assumptions which have not been tested scientifically.
They also say it is not easy to relocate a species from one ecology to another. The shifting of river dolphins having vision will require a detailed study of the habitat before any such adventure can be planned.
