Guwahati has become the first city in India to have its own City Animal with the Kamrup Metropolitan district administration declaring the Gangetic river dolphin as the mascot. The district administration had organised online and off-line voting among three protected species which are on the verge of extinction – the Gangetic river dolphin, Black softshell turtle and the Greater adjutant stork. Less than 2,000 Gangetic river dolphins remain in the Brahmaputra, one of the major rivers of Asia and is more commonly known in the area as “Hihu”. The three-month long voting process attracted 60,003 participants to decide the City Animal and the Gangetic river dolphin received the most votes, 24,247. In the off-line voting, 76 schools and colleges across Guwahati participated.
