Fisheries department imposes ban on fishing in HP water for two months

Bilaspur, Himachal Pradesh: The Department of Fisheries has imposed a two-month ban on fishing in the waters of Himachal Pradesh from June 16 to August 15, Director and Chief Fisheries Himachal Pradesh, Bilaspur, Pawan Kumar said on Tuesday.

There are about 13 thousand fishermen whose livelihood depends on fishing in the reservoirs, rivers, streams and their tributaries in the state, out of which over 6,300 fishermen are engaged in fishing in the five reservoirs, namely Gobind Sagar, Pong, Chamera, Koldam and Ranjit Sagar, whose area is around 43,785 hectares.

It is the responsibility of the Himachal Pradesh Fisheries Department to ensure that all these fishermen families continue to get fish and people get protein-rich animal food in the form of fish, Kumar said.

The fisheries department imposes a complete ban on fishing in general waters for two months every year because during this period most of the important species of fish reproduce naturally due to which fish seeds are automatically collected in these waters, he added.

For this work, the department has to do the work of fish conservation with great promptness. Camps are set up by deploying a special staff force for fish conservation in the reservoirs of the state.

This year, a total of 20 camps (17 in Govind Sagar and 3 in Kol Dam) and 1 flying squad have been formed in Bilaspur, a total of 17 camps and 1 flying squad in Pong Dam and five camps (3 in Chamera and 2 in Ranjit Sagar) and 1 flying squad in Chamba.

These employees protect the fish wealth by patrolling by water and road, he said, adding that during this period, there will be a complete ban on any type of fishing and sale in the general waters of the state.

He also appealed to the people not to be involved in any kind of illegal fishing and cautioned that violation could result in a maximum of 3 years imprisonment or a fine up to Rs, 5,000 or both.

Hunting with nets during the prohibited period comes under the category of non-bailable offence, he added.