Ravindra Kumar Sinha | |
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Born | 1954 (age 68–69) Keotar village, Jehanabad dist. Bihar, India |
Nationality | Indian |
Other names | Dolphin Man of India Dolphin Sinha |
Occupation(s) | Served as Vice Chancellor of Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University, Professor, Researcher and Wildlife Conservationist |
Known for | Conservation of Gangetic Dolphins |
Spouse | Uma Sinha |
Parents |
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Awards | Order of the Golden Ark by His Royal Highness Prince Bernhard of The Netherlands (1999) Golden Jubilee Award of National Academy of Sciences, India (2000) Padma Shri by the President of India (2016) Farsh Se Arsh Tak by Outlook Magazine (2019) |
Ravindra Kumar Sinha is a Padma Shri awarded Indian biologist and environmentalist. He served as Vice-Chancellor of Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University from 2019-2023 and also served in Nalanda Open University. Previously he was the Head of the Department of Zoology at Patna University, and is a pioneer researcher and wildlife conservationist, famous for his efforts for the conservation of Gangetic Dolphins, he is popularly known as the "Dolphin Man of India".
His scientific research and conservation campaign for the last 4 decades have been crucial to the efforts of saving the South Asian river dolphin from extinction. In response to the awareness of the urgency of protecting the Ganga River dolphin raised by Sinha, the Government of India designated this Dolphin as the National Aquatic Animal of India [1] [2] in 2009.
A member of the IUCN Species Survival Commission [ citation needed ] and the National Ganga River Basin Authority, his contributions are reported in the establishment of the Vikramshila Gangetic Dolphin Sanctuary, Bhagalpur and he is a recipient of the Order of the Golden Ark of the Netherlands. [3] The Government of India awarded him the fourth highest civilian honour of the Padma Shri, in 2016, for his contributions to environmental conservation. [4]
This section of a biography of a living person does not include any references or sources .(September 2016) |
Prof. R K Sinha conducted surveys of the entire length of the Ganges and most of its tributaries in India and Nepal to assess the distribution, population status, ecological requirements, and threats to the dolphin. The animal was facing extinction due to indiscriminate poaching and habitat degradation and loss in many areas. Sinha organized education and awareness programs among the local fishermen as well as secondary and college students. The national and international print and electronic media widely promoted his research and conservation efforts, attracting the attention of both national and international policy makers, executives, and scientific communities.
He was designated as the "Dolphin Man of India" by S.Z. Qasim, Member of the Planning Commission, in the International Seminar on River Dolphins in Delhi in 1992. Sinha was invited to membership of the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland in 1994; was elected Fellow of the Linnean Society of London in 1996, and elected Chairman of the Asian River Dolphin Committee in 1997 under the aegis of the IUCN.
Sinha has published over 100 research papers in peer-reviewed journals, four books, and over 40 technical and research reports primarily on the Ganges dolphin, river biodiversity, and Ganges pollution. In 2001, he accomplished the first ever rescue and translocation of a stranded pregnant dolphin.
This Gangetic dolphin, which Dr. Sinha is trying to conserve, is one of the only three obligate fresh water dolphins in the world, one of the most endangered mammals on earth; an endemic species of the Indian subcontinent; a natural aquatic heritage of India and an indicator species of the health of the Ganga system. The Gangetic dolphins have long been poached for the extraction of their body oil as a fish attractant for use in oil fishery. Sinha discovered an alternative made from fish scraps. By effectively communicating and popularizing this alternative among Indian fishermen, dolphin poaching has been significantly reduced. This discovery was published in the internationally reputed journal Biological Conservation (London). Sinha developed the Conservation Action Plan for the Gangetic Dolphin in 2010 which was enthusiastically accepted by the Government of India.
Sinha is also known for his contribution to two famous documentaries Alert on the Ganges (26 minutes, French) and Mr. Dolphin Sinha: Think Globally and Act Locally (52 minutes, English) both produced by Mr. Christian Gallissian in 2007.
Sri Jairam Ramesh, Union Minister of Environment and Forests, highlighted Sinha's work in the Rajya Sabha on 8 March 2011 stating, "..one of the leading authorities on dolphin is a Professor. His name is R.K. Sinha, popularly called 'Dolphin Sinha.' With the help of people like him, we are trying to bring back the Gangetic dolphin which is a unique heritage resource for India." Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission of India attended dolphin watches in Patna in 2011 and 2012. His enthusiasm for Sinha's conservation efforts led him to establish the National Dolphin Research Center in Patna, now in progress.
This section of a biography of a living person does not include any references or sources .(September 2016) |
This section of a biography of a living person does not include any references or sources .(September 2016) |
This section of a biography of a living person does not include any references or sources .(September 2016) |
This section of a biography of a living person does not include any references or sources .(September 2016) |
The Ganges is a trans-boundary river of Asia which flows through India and Bangladesh. The 2,525 km (1,569 mi) river rises in the western Himalayas in the Indian state of Uttarakhand. It flows south and east through the Gangetic plain of North India, receiving the right-bank tributary, the Yamuna, which also rises in the western Indian Himalayas, and several left-bank tributaries from Nepal that account for the bulk of its flow. In West Bengal state, India, a feeder canal taking off from its right bank diverts 50% of its flow southwards, artificially connecting it to the Hooghly River. The Ganges continues into Bangladesh, its name changing to the Padma. It is then joined by the Jamuna, the lower stream of the Brahmaputra, and eventually the Meghna, forming the major estuary of the Ganges Delta, and emptying into the Bay of Bengal. The Ganges–Brahmaputra–Meghna system is the second-largest river on earth by discharge.
Bihar is a state in eastern India. It is the third largest state by population, the 12th largest by area, and the 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West Bengal to the east, and Jharkhand to the south. The Bihar plain is split by the river Ganges, which flows from west to east.
The Ganges river dolphin is a species of toothed whale classified in the family Platanistidae. It lives in the Ganges and related rivers of South Asia, namely in the countries of India, Nepal, and Bangladesh. It is related to the much smaller Indus river dolphin which lives in the Indus River in Pakistan and the Beas River of northwestern India.
The Ghaghara River, called Karnali River in Nepal, Mapcha Tsangpo in Tibet, and the lower Ghaghara in Awadh called Sarayu River, is a perennial trans-boundary river that originates in the northern slopes of the Himalayas in the Tibetan Plateau, cuts through the Himalayas in Nepal and joins the Sharda River at Brahmaghat in India. Together they form the Ghaghara River, a major left-bank tributary of the Ganges. With a length of 507 km (315 mi), it is the longest river in Nepal. The total length of the Ghaghara up to its confluence with the Ganges at Revelganj in Bihar is 1,080 km (670 mi). It is the largest tributary of the Ganges by volume and the second largest by length after Yamuna.
The Barak River flows 900 kilometres (560 mi) through the states of Manipur, Nagaland, Mizoram and Assam in India. Further it enters Bangladesh where it bifurcates into the Surma river and the Kushiyara river which converge again to become the Meghna river before forming the Ganges Delta with the Ganga and the Brahmaputra rivers and flowing into the Bay of Bengal. Of its total length, 524 km (326 mi) is in India, 31 km (19 mi) on the Indo–Bangladesh border and the rest in Bangladesh. The upper part of its navigable part is in India — 121 km (75 mi) between Lakhipur and Bhanga, declared as National Waterway 6, (NW-6) since the year 2016. It drains a basin of 52,000 km2 (20,000 sq mi), of which 41,723 km2 (16,109 sq mi) lies in India, 1.38% (rounded) of the country. The water and banks host or are visited by a wide variety of flora and fauna.
Kahalgaon is a municipality Town and one of 3 sub-divisions of Bhagalpur district in the state of Bihar, India. It is located close to the Vikramashila, that was once a famous centre of Buddhist learning across the world, along with Nalanda during the Pala dynasty. The Kahalgaon Super Thermal Power Plant(KhSTPP) is located near the town(3 km).
Bhagalpur, historically known as Champa Nagri, is a city in the Indian state of Bihar, situated on the southern bank of the Ganges river. It is the third largest city of Bihar by population and also serves the headquarters of Bhagalpur district, Bhagalpur division & Eastern Range. It is known as the Silk City & also listed for development under the Smart Cities Mission by Government of India. It is the only district in Bihar after capital city Patna where three major higher educational institutions IIIT, TMBU & Agriculture University(BAU) are located and also Vikramshila Central University is under construction next to the ruins of ancient Vikramshila University. Bhagalpur Railway Station serves the city. The river around city is home to the Gangetic dolphin, the National Aquatic Animal of India, and the Vikramshila Gangetic Dolphin Sanctuary is established near the town. The city holds the largest Manasa Puja and one of the largest processions in Kali Puja, an intangible cultural heritage of the region.
The ongoing pollution of the Ganges, the largest river in the Indian subcontinent, poses a significant threat to human health and the environment. The river, which is severely polluted with human waste and industrial contaminants, provides water to about 40% of India's population across 11 states, serving an estimated population of 500 million people, more than any other river in the world.
Anugrah Narayan College, Patna is a co-educational institution of the state of Bihar, India. It is located in Patna, the state capital city, on a 13 acres (53,000 m2) site. A Constituent unit of Patliputra University, the college was established in January, 1956 and its first principal was economist Dr. Gorak Nath Sinha. The college has 22 Undergraduate departments and 23 Postgraduate departments. The college has been selected for Chancellor Award 2021 in Best College and Best Principal of Bihar.
Patna Medical College and Hospital was established in 1925 and originally known as Prince of Wales Medical College, is a medical college located in Patna, the state capital of Bihar, India.
Shaibal Gupta was an Indian social scientist and political economist whose work focused on the economy of the Indian state of Bihar. He was the founder and member-secretary of the Asian Development Research Institute in Patna, Bihar. His research was a contributor to the rollout for various state government led societal development programs and economic reforms in the state.
Vikramshila Gangetic Dolphin Sanctuary is located in Bhagalpur District of Bihar, India. The sanctuary is a 60 kilometers stretch of the Ganges River from Sultanganj to Kahalgaon in Bhagalpur district. notified as Vikramshila Gangetic Dolphin Sanctuary in 1991, it is the protected area for the endangered Gangetic dolphins in Asia. Once found in abundance, only a few hundred remain, of which half are found here.
The National Waterway 1 (NW-1) or Ganga-Bhagirathi-Hooghly river system is located in India and runs from Prayagraj in Uttar Pradesh to Haldia in West Bengal via Patna and Bhagalpur in Bihar across the Ganges river. It is 1,620 km (1,010 mi) long, making it the longest waterway in India. It is of prime importance amongst all the national waterways considering its locational advantages. The NW-1 passes through West Bengal, Jharkhand, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh and serves major cities and their industrial hinterlands like;
The state of Bihar has a number of bridges, extending from few metres to a few kilometres. The history of long bridges goes back to the British Empire when the site for the Koilwar bridge was surveyed in 1851. Since then a number of small and large bridges have crept up. Some are even largest of their kind. Mahatma Gandhi Setu, joining Patna and Hajipur was India's longest river bridge from 1982 to 2017.
Dr. Jitendra Kumar Singh is an Indian oncologist, the ex director of Mahavir Cancer Institute & Research Centre and the president of Cancer Care India, the apex body for cancer support organisations in India. He was honoured by the Government of India, in 2012, with the fourth highest Indian civilian award of Padma Shri.
Gopal Prasad Sinha is an Indian neurologist, politician and a member of the Institutional Ethical Committee of the Indian Council of Medical Research. He was born and brought up in Patna, in the Indian state of Bihar and is an alumnus of Patna University. He unsuccessfully contested in 2014 Indian Parliament elections from the Patna Sahib constituency under the Janata Dal (United) candidacy, against the incumbent Member of Parliament, Shatrughan Sinha.
Indu Bhushan Sinha was an Indian nephrologist and medical academic from the Indian state of Bihar. He is a former professor and head of the department of nephrology at Patna Medical College and Hospital. He has served as the editor of The Patna Journal of Medicine of the Indian Medical Association (1986–89) and is a life member of the Indian Society of Nephrology. The Government of India awarded him the fourth highest civilian honour of the Padma Shri, in 2008, for his contributions to medical science.
Project Dolphin is an Indian government initiative to conserve both riverine and oceanic dolphin species launched in 2021.
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