Shifra Menezes

This is a fishy tale with a sweet denouement. After teetering on the edge of extinction, the golden mahseer is now making a comeback in numbers thanks to the pioneering efforts of Tata Power

The golden mahseer, or Tor putitora, a coveted catch for rookie and professional anglers alike, is on the comeback trail. The species known as the 'tiger in the water' has been brought back from the brink of extinction and is making a strong return to rivers and lakes, in India and overseas, thanks in no small part to the exertions of Tata Power.

While species-protection initiatives have gained momentum in India since the 1970s, aquatic life has yet to capture the imagination of conservationists. That situation is changing, though, and under-threat fish species are increasingly coming onto the radar of individuals and organisations working to preserve India's aquatic creatures. One of the most significant attempts in this area has been the pioneering effort, kick started in 1970, by Tata Power that has pushed the mahseer and its conservation into the limelight.

The mahseer, a sturdy species, is the largest of the world's freshwater scaly fish. Six different species have been recognised under the genus, each of which inhabit very different environs. Some are indigenous to tropical waters with a high of 35°C, while others have adapted to sub-Himalayan regions where temperatures dip to 6°C in winter. The golden mahseer, capable of growing to a maximum of 2.75 metres in length and topping 200lb in weight, remains the king of its class.

Things were looking bleak for the golden mahseer before initiatives such as those driven by Tata Power began pulling the species back from the brink. Indiscriminate fishing of brood and juvenile fish, and the deteriorating ecological condition of its spawning and rearing grounds as a result of river valley projects, meant that the mahseer was hurtling towards extinction.

The falling numbers were a cause for concern among those who understood the danger the golden mahseer was in. Two prominent mahseer lovers were S. Moolgaonkar, the late managing director of Tata Motors (then known as Telco), and S. P. Manaktala, former managing director of Tata Power (then known as Tata Electric Companies). They approached C. V. Kulkarni, the retired director of fisheries for Maharashtra, to support the rehabilitation of the species.

After a study of the sparse literature available at the time and careful observation of the fish in its natural habitat, the efforts initiated by Mr Moolgaonkar, Mr Manaktala and Dr Kulkarni began in August 1970. Tata Power transported healthy mahseer from its Himalayan habitat to its facility at Lonavla near Mumbai. The fish needed to be acclimatised to the changed environs and higher temperatures. They also needed to be reared for three years, until they reached maturity and were ready to breed. All of this was done in right earnest by employees designated for the task.

One crucial area that did not pose a problem was feeding. The golden mahseer have a voracious appetite and they readily took to the artificial feed made available at Lonavla. Only after this, and careful monitoring of the mahseer's behaviour was the first batch of eggs, approximately 14,000, procured through a process known as dry stripping. These were artificially fertilised and 10,000 brought to maturity. Tata Power was on its way to turning the tide for the mahseer.

Since those early days the mahseer project has gathered the momentum required to sustain itself. The hatchery at the Tata Power complex in Lonavla today has the capacity to hatch over half-a-million eggs at a time, and it has successfully produced 400,000 semi-fingerlings of golden mahseer in the last five years.

The system of hatching mahseer eggs in captive conditions, different in different parts of India, is simplest at the Lonavla hatchery, where a 'flow through' method is used. Eight wooden hatchery trays fitted with plastic mesh at the bottom are arranged and floated in a rectangular cement tank (hatchery). About 30,000 eggs can be accommodated in each tray. The tank has a direct water sprinkling system that ensures the water is kept oxygenated, a necessity to bring the eggs to maturity.

Tata Power's success with the golden mahseer initiative has encouraged the company to stretch its conservation efforts to cover three other species of the fish. Attempts to introduce the golden mahseer in other parts of the country have seen encouraging results. Eggs are packed in moist cotton and transported to distant Indian rivers and lakes and even to projects abroad. The survival rate of the eggs is of over 80 per cent.

Tata Power has documented its mahseer experience in a monograph on the history and conservation of the great fish. The book is now used extensively by scientists involved in mahseer breeding and conservation programmes across India and in several South East Asian countries. Tata Power has also provided technical expertise to mahseer projects launched in Jammu and Kashmir, Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Kerala, Karnataka and Assam. The company has extended training facilities to over 600 fishery scientists across India and has organised workshops at the national level for senior scientists and policymakers to formulate recommendations for mahseer conservation.

The mahseer project is one of many that Tata Power is involved with in the environmental domain. The company has undertaken a major forestation drive in and around the areas where it functions. The scale of these operations can be judged by the fact that it has planted 720,000 saplings in 2003-04 alone.

Additionally, the company has reached out to neighbouring rural and tribal communities through a variety of continuing projects and programmes. It has constructed and asphalted nearly 100 km of new roads, connecting remote villages with towns, schools and medical facilities. Family planning and health camps are regular features.

However, it is the mahseer project that remains one of the brightest feathers in the Tata Power cap. The project has promoted biodiversity and encouraged eco-tourism, while giving a fresh lease of life to one of the most magnificent of the world's water wonders.

Uploaded in March 2005