Towards a successful River Dolphin conservation plan in India: A scientometric mapping of past research and current needs

The Ganges Dolphin needs uninterrupted water sources in order to both communicate and to locate its food. Ever-increasing activities in the rivers, especially from motorized vessels, are likely to add noise to the soundscape used by this animal and may affect its ability to locate its prey or to sense its environment. Although efforts have been made to improve the quality and flow of the water passing through the Ganga River system, a coordinated effort among policymakers, local implementing authorities, researchers, and funding agencies is needed to achieve the desired goal of restoring the habitat of dolphins, stopping their accidental deaths, increasing their number by captive breeding, and reinstating the biodiversity of aquatic organisms that are passively or actively linked to them. While passive restoration plans such as improving water quality, increasing water volume, and habitat reclamation may work well, the developmental needs along the river exert constant pressure on these plans. These plans may not be effective without the strict enforcement of guidelines, an understanding of the requirements of the plans by all the stakeholders, and the awareness of the population living along the rivers. Therefore, conservation efforts, along with ongoing passive restoration processes aimed at improving the dolphin's living ecosystem by providing enough quality water cover and prey, should focus on increasing the population of these animals by propagating them in captivity through biological or biotechnological means, the success of which needs strong scientific research backing. A scientometric analysis of 20 years (2001-2020) on this animal shows that scientific studies are confined to the ecology of the animals and very little is known either of their biology or their genetics. During the study period, India occupied fourth spot in number of publications on river dolphins, with the Indian Institute of Technology as leading institute. Advance biology techniques may allow us to breed the animal in captivity and even clone the animal. However, the research towards this requires creating the necessary basic infrastructure, funding, and policy support, and developing human resources for research and management.