WFD 2021: Incidents of MASS FISH DEATH in India

November 20, 2021November 24, 2021 SANDRPLeave a comment

Feature image:- Thousands of dead fish wash ashore on Yamuna banks in Agra (ToI, 27 July 2021)

November 21, marks World Fisheries Day (WFD) to address the sustainability issue in fisheries sector. The day also signifies the critical contribution of largely neglected indigenous fisherfolk communities facing range of threats over their livelihoods. On WFD SANDRP has been presenting detailed annual reports covering important developments concerning fish diversity, fishery industry and fisherfolks wellbeing.

on WFD 2021, this first part in three part series focuses on mass fish death incidents in India over past one year. The next part will cover successful efforts by fisher communities to protect fish diversity and their livelihoods apart from relevant positive developments. The final part will present the overall status of fish species, fisheries industry and fisherfolks struggles during past one year.

Continue reading →

Photoblog: Mangroves of the Aghanashini: Linking the River, Land and the Sea

April 10, 2020April 11, 2020 SANDRPLeave a comment

This photoblog by Abhay Kanvinde takes us to mangroves of Aghanashini River Estuary in Kumta Taluk of Uttar Kannada, Karnataka. This is a special place as Aghanashini is a free flowing river with good forest cover in its entire catchment. This means that the mangroves get unhindered supply of freshwater as well as nutrients from the riverine system. This has resulted in the highest area under mangroves in Honnavar Forest Division at 169.4 hectares. Forest Department has also planted about 6 sq. kms of mangroves here, which are thriving. Continue reading “Photoblog: Mangroves of the Aghanashini: Linking the River, Land and the Sea” →

Dams · Fish Sanctuaries · Fish, Fisheries, Fisherfolk · Free flowing rivers · Karnataka · Western Ghats · Wetlands · Wild and Scenic Rivers Act

People of the free-flowing Aghanashini

March 31, 2020March 31, 2020 SANDRPLeave a comment

“I don’t know my age. But I know that I have been coming to this river since I was a child everyday to collect bivalves.” Janaki Amma told us while wading waist-deep in the Aghanashini estuary. Janaki Amma is at least 70 years old and has the agility of a ballet dancer as she plunges inside the limpid water one more time, and comes up with a new haul of bivalves in a wicker basket tied to her waist.

On the banks of the river, Thulasi and Sumitra sit laughing on an old wooden boat, as only old friends can. They collect bivalves too. They have never seen the river not having the shiny, black bivalves. Throughout Aghanashini Estuary, we hear this again and again: fisherfolk and rice farmers, priests and devotees, older women and solid middle-aged men: all echoing the sentiment: “Our lives are entwined with the river.” Continue reading “People of the free-flowing Aghanashini” →

Kerala · Rivers

Ithikkara River in Kerala: Tampering with Nature – a recipe for negative NPV

January 25, 2019January 25, 2019 SANDRPLeave a comment

Guest Blog by Jacob Chandy Varghese (jacob.c.varghese@gmail.com)

An Old Story: I read an account about Netherlands in the journal, Annals of Botany (2010)[i] . This story dates from the 11^th century. Many centuries ago, the coastal plain of the Netherlands consisted of a dynamic landscape of meandering river channels, extensive floodplains and large complexes of fens and bogs. Sediment deposition and peat formation kept pace with the gradually rising sea level, so that the level of the land remained well above the water for most of the time. Since 11^th century, inhabitants of the low-countries started to modify the hydrology of their surroundings to create protection from flooding for their dwellings and agricultural fields. They built dikes and started to manipulate the water level. Continue reading “Ithikkara River in Kerala: Tampering with Nature – a recipe for negative NPV” →

Dams · Free flowing rivers · Wild and Scenic Rivers Act

The Singing River: Story of America’s Largest Free-flowing river

October 7, 2018October 7, 2018 SANDRPLeave a comment

As we approached a bridge on the rumbling green river, I concentrated all my senses to my ears. After all, we were about to cross the Singing River. Legend has it that a low humming sounds rise from the Pascagoula River[i], heard only by a few. Poignant stories of love and loss are interwoven into the sounds of the river. Continue reading “The Singing River: Story of America’s Largest Free-flowing river” →