Informatics Publishing Limited

R. K. Manna ¹, A. Roychoudhury ¹, B. N. Das ¹, S. Samanta ¹, V. R. Suresh ¹, A. P. Sharma ¹

Affiliations
1 Central Inland Fisheries Research Institute, Barrackpore, Kolkata - 700120, IN

Abstract

The lowermost 500 km of the river Ganges in India faced major changes in its ecology and fisheries due to a major human induced modification in 1975 through the construction of Farakka barrage to divert sufficient portion of Ganga water through Bhagirathi for keeping Kolkata port functional. Increased freshwater discharge affected salinity regime by downward shifting of saline zone of the estuary. This stretch of the Ganga is known for its lucrative fishery of migratory hilsa along with many other prized fishes. A recent investigation revealed the presence of as many as 24 different types of fishing gears which are in operation to harvest fishes from all ecological niches. Major fishing gears involved in capture fishery in lower stretch of river Ganga in India are various forms of gill net and bag net. Bag nets contribute in average 73% of the total catch whereas drift gill net contribute about 24% of the total fish catch in Hooghly estuary. The rest of the gears catch about only 3% of the total catch. Distribution, seasonality and catch pattern of gears in different sampling centres are described in the present communication. It was observed that non-selective gears like Beenti jal (bag net), Chaurpata jal (set barrier), Ber jal (Seine net), Vessal jal (lift net), etc., catch lot of fish larvae and juveniles due to their smaller mesh size and thus poses a serious threat to sustainable fisheries in lower stretch of river Ganges. Formulation of suitable policies and their implementation is need of the hour to save precious fish diversity vis-a-vis fisheries.

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K. D. Joshi ¹, D. N. Jha ¹, A. Alam ¹, S. K. Srivastava ¹, Vijay Kumar ¹, A. P. Sharma ²

Affiliations
1 Allahabad Regional Centre, Central Inland Fisheries Research Institute (ICAR), 24 Panna Lal Road, Allahabad 211 002, IN
2 Central Inland Fisheries Research Institute, Barrackpore, Kolkata 700 120, IN

Abstract

Environmental flow of the river Sone at Indrapuri barrage was estimated using 36 years discharge data and the Global Environmental Flow Calculator Software. To maintain the river in moderate condition and to keep basic ecosystem functions intact, at least 18.9% of mean annual runoff (MAR) has been estimated, while the actual discharge of the river was merely 5.16% of MAR. The river presently holds 89 fish species, but 20 species reported in an earlier study were not observed, while 14 new fish species were encountered. Sediments, water and macro-benthic biota of the river were also studied to know the effect of low discharge.

Keywords

Environmental Flow, Fish Diversity, Indrapuri Barrage, River Sone, Water Discharge.

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A. P. Sharma ¹, B. P. Mohanty ¹

Affiliations
1 ICAR-Central Inland Fisheries Research Institute, Barrackpore, Kolkata 700 120, IN

Abstract

No Abstract.

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C. M. Roshith ¹, R. K. Manna ¹, V. R. Suresh ¹, D. Panda ¹, A. P. Sharma ¹, A. Roy Chowdhury ¹, M. Mukherjee ¹, S. K. Banik ¹

Affiliations
1 Central Inland Fisheries Research Institute, Barrackpore, Kolkata 700 120, IN

Abstract

The Chilika, situated along India's eastern coast (in Odisha), is the largest brackish water lagoon in Asia with water spread varying from 906 km² during summer to 1165 km² during monsoon. It is among the most internationally focused Ramsar site in India owing to its rich biodiversity, including species that have been categorized as threatened by IUCN.

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