Some positive moves on conservation of Indian freshwater fish were made at a recent workshop
following a five-day workshop on the Conservation Assessment and Management Plan ( camp ) organised by the National Bureau of Fish Genetic Resources ( nbfgr ), Lucknow, and the Zoo Outreach Organisation ( zoo ) from September 22 to 26, the finalised draft list of endangered freshwater fish species in India has been sent to the participants for final corrections and will be declared soon. Fishery experts from all over the country assessed the endangered status of Indian freshwater fish species at the workshop. A total of 329 species were assessed from the list of 633 from the nbfgr database, that formed the base for the categorisation.
The list holds four freshwater fish - Ompok pabda , O pabo , Tor musullah and Gymnocypris biswasi - as "endangered", while 17 species were classified as "extinct".In this, the nbfgr strictly followed the guidelines devised by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources ( iucn ).
The task to revise the list of threatened species of freshwater fish was taken up after a gap of five years. The nbfgr aimed at, among other things, adding more species to the list of threatened freshwater species and to assess each species according to the revised iucn red list criteria. The workshop would help in drawing up priorities for conservation action.
Eight sub-groups were constituted on the last day to discuss problems identified during the workshop regarding special issues. The issues included the legal aspects of the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act ( wpa ), including Indian Fisheries Act; sanctuaries for fish; research recommendations for fish conservation; suitability of revised iucn criteria for categorisation of freshwater fish; and mass awareness programmes for conservation.
The special issue group on legal aspects recommended inclusion of fish species which have been prioritised according to the revised iucn red list categories in the schedules of the wpa. The working group on research recommendations on freshwater resources felt an urgent need for stock assessment and monitoring of Indian riverine fish fauna and formation of regional network study groups for places of exceptional biodiversity, such as the Northeastern region and the Western Ghats. The group also recommended generation of precise information on migration, breeding behaviour and spawning habits of threatened fish species, attempts for their captive breeding, aquaculture of peninsular carps and development of a network on aquatic germplasm conservation.
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