India, March 5 -- Dolphins thrive in areas with sufficient water depth and minimal anthropogenic disturbances, a first ever population estimation of river dolphins in India by the Union government stated.

The survey under Project Dolphin was carried out by the Union environment ministry along with Wildlife Institute of India (WII) and other organisations.

Under Project Dolphin, India completed a survey of river dolphins across eight states covering the entire range of the Ganges River dolphin in the Ganga and Brahmaputra, as well as the Indus River dolphin in the Beas River systems.

The population estimate reveals 6,324 Ganges River dolphins and only 3 Indus River dolphins, the report released by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday ...