Cauvery Masheer Under Peril Again!
Posted: Thu Nov 15, 2012 12:00 am
What you are going to read is yet another episode where the lethal combination of inept and myopic bureaucracy and a well intentioned do-gooder are about to destroy a rare success story of conservation in the context of Indian wildlife.
The article is self-explanatory and I need not add to the content save for a couple of comments. The benefit to the local communities and the wildlife and habitat,apart from the Masheer , was undeniable.Yet, lack of knowledge and governmental inefficiency rush the destruction of our wildlife. The Masheer fishing was not hunting.They are caught and released.
http://www.anglingdirectholidays.com/pr ... -blog.html
The article is self-explanatory and I need not add to the content save for a couple of comments. The benefit to the local communities and the wildlife and habitat,apart from the Masheer , was undeniable.Yet, lack of knowledge and governmental inefficiency rush the destruction of our wildlife. The Masheer fishing was not hunting.They are caught and released.
http://www.anglingdirectholidays.com/pr ... -blog.html
We received notification from Jungle Lodges Resorts on the 9th of November that as of the 15th November 2012 fishing at Galibore Fishing Camp will no longer be permitted. As you can imagine this was a huge shock to Jungle Lodges Resorts and us, considering last year this was all sorted with agreed maps of the river detailing what areas are fishable and what areas fell inside the Wildlife Sanctuary prohibiting fishing.
We have since this notification along with Jungle Lodges been trying to get answers and clarification from the Forestry Commission and MoEF, which controls this area. Up until now all we have managed to confirm is that back in August this year the forestry commission got permission from the central government to DOUBLE the size of the current wildlife sanctuary. (Unfortunately this information was only passed to JLR in November and subsequently passed on to all other parties involved) As under the current legislation there is no hunting inside any wildlife sanctuary in India. As fishing is classed as hunting this will prohibit any fishing for virtually the whole length of the Cauvery River.
This is not only a disaster for us all as anglers but also for the Mahseer survival. For without anglers and the annual revenue we provide, which funds the fishing guides who work as anti poaching guides out of season, the river and all fish will be exposed to the poaching gangs who will move in very quickly.
As you can imagine our first priority is to our customers who currently have bookings for this up and coming season in January 2013. Our second priority is for the safe protection of the Mahseer while we as anglers and conservationists join in an united voice to try and overrule these decisions.
For fishing for Mahseer as a sport has a long history, it’s even reported that Chalukya King, Someshwara, (from the Indian Dynasty) enjoyed fishing for the Mahseer as early as the 11th century. Then before India’s independence the British popularised fishing for Mahseer, originally coming to fish in India for Trout they found a even bigger and better fish to catch in the fast flowing rivers the mighty Mahseer. In those days conservation was not a concern as Mahseer were plentiful everywhere. At one point the Mahseer was known as the ‘Sanderson Fish' as GP Sanderson, author of the book, Thirteen Years among the Wild Beasts of India, caught on a hand line a fish estimated to weigh about 110 lbs. Then in 1906, CE Murray-Aynsley, landed the first ever Mahseer to be caught on rod and reel weighing in at 104LBS.
With the new interest of fishing for Mahseer is was quickly found that the River Cauvery and its tributaries produced bigger fish than those found in the snow-fed rivers of Northern India. This was the birth of many legendary captures for years to come with the stories being passed down from generation to generation, which still today provides the magic of going to fish Mahseer on the Cauvery.
Then unfortunately with the construction of dams in adjoining areas, the migration of the Mahseer got restricted and even blocked at some places. Combined with locals in villages along the Cauvery using nets and explosives to catch fish, which destroys all aquatic life including the precious Mahseer from fingerlings to legends. The last refuge for big Mahseer today is the stretch of the Cauvery between the falls at Shivasamudram and Mekedatu. The state government could not make much headway in controlling all the poaching activities. Consequently, the number and size of the Mahseer population began to decline quickly and drastically. The threat of total extinction loomed. It was obvious that the habitat of the Mahseer needed to be safeguarded. With these objectives in mind the Wildlife Association of South India (WASI) was formed in 1972-1973 and soon after the Wildlife Protection Act was passed.
The pioneering efforts of WASI were subsequently supported by JLR which set up, over a period of time, three angling camps called the Cauvery Fishing Camps on the banks of the river to promote eco tourism and angling on a all important needed financial basis. Then around 10 years ago Angling Direct Holidays started to work with JLR guaranteeing an annual income allowing for the provision and investment to further protect the Mahseer.
The angling revenue generated by this partnership and other Indian anglers helped in several ways to curb poaching. Ex-poachers were rehabilitated as fishing guides. Anti-poaching camps were set up. Local people got involved and now help conservation efforts especially keeping the Mahseer in mind. Also set up were Mahseer feeding camps, as every season we feed 5,000 kg of ragi to keep the Mahseer within the protected 30 km stretch of river. Because if they weren't fed, these fish would migrate up and down the river where destructive dynamiting, netting and poisoning is still common practice.
Everything was running smoothly and anyone who knows or has fished the river with us, will tell you. The fishing along this entire stretch has just improved year after year. One of the most encouraging signs was the sheer number of fish. A clear indication that with protection from poachers these fish being allowed to breed and the fingerlings soon grew into fish around 30lb. In fact the sheer number of 30lb fish in the Cauvery now has to be seen to be believed. Then back in 2009 a single man called, Tiger G Ramesh stepped in. A Bangalore-based techie, who is a hardcore wildlife enthusiast and ex-CEO of Wilderness Resorts which owned Cicada Resorts in Kabini and Bandipur,
For his own personal reasons only known to him. Tiger Ramesh issued a legal notice on 17 April, 2009, under Section 55 of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, to the following persons – the Secretary, Ministry of Ecology and Environment, the Director, Project Elephant, Director, Wildlife Protection, MoEF, the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (PCCF), Wildlife Warden, the Chief Secretary and Principal Secretary, Forests. Tiger Ramesh sought an explanation on how permission was granted to Bush Betta Wildlife Adventure Resort fishing camp inside the Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary. On the grounds that this was a gross violation of the provisions of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972. Tiger Ramesh wanted to know how the State Forest Department could grant permission to Bush Betta to put up any construction whatsoever in a wildlife sanctuary without prior approval from the National Wildlife Board and Supreme Court.
Tiger Ramesh followed up his legal notice by writing to the Supreme Court's Central Empowered Committee (CEC) pointing out that the Karnataka Forest Department had blatantly violated provisions of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972. It had permitted fishing which amounts to hunting inside the Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary, a protected area for the Asiatic Elephant covered under Project Elephant.
In 2010, following Tiger G Ramesh's application, the CEC served notice to the PCCF and Wildlife Warden and the MoEF. Following the receipt of the clarification from the MoEF, JLR and all others involved in fishing to suspend fishing operations in all stretches of the river Cauvery.
On receiving this news meetings were held with all angling parties involved, it was at this time old maps that defined the boundaries of the existing Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary. It was at this point that it was found that certain areas along the Galibore Fishing Camp were in fact outside the current sanctuary. Clarification was requested from MoEF and it was agreed that the main areas where outside the sanctuary and therefore did not fall with in the current fishing ban. Therefore the fishing for the 2011 season remained unaffected and plans were made for the next five years fishing.
How ironic, that now with the expansion of the Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary, all anglers are again caught up in this legal battle and the Mahseer will no longer be protected which totally defeats what Wildlife Sanctuary’s are designed to do.
If we sit and do nothing the radical actions of one man will potentially have far bigger reaching consequences not just for Mahseer but all of India’s wildlife. Already what one man started has started to open up major consequences for only just over 1 month ago all tourism in India’s Wildlife Sanctuary’s was suspended as the accommodation, tiger safaris etc was deemed illegal. Fortunately this decision was overturned in the supreme high court. For it is a well now fact from evidence all over the world, without eco tourism and the income this brings into the relevant country, Wildlife Sanctuary’s / Parks fail, as the governments do not have the funding to protect them from poachers.
As anglers and tourist we do have a voice, but we need to be united and try to protect the future of Mahseer fishing for now and future generations. Both ADH and JLR along with other fishing enthusiasts will be working to try and get the Indian Government to overturn this decision.
We will keep you all informed of our progress and also how you can get involved.
