Fishery college to conserve fish biodiversity

NAGPUR: The College of Fishery Sciences, started in 2005 under the aegis of city based Maharashtra Animal and Fishery Sciences University ( Mafsu), has also started a project this year in collaboration with the state biodiversity board to study and conserve biodiversity of fish available in region.

Swapnil Ghatge, assistant professor working on the project, says there are some fish which are particularly found in Sipna river in Melghat, Wainganga river which passes through Gadchiroli, Bhandara, Gondia and Nagpur districts and Paingana river in Yavatmal district.

"We are trying to identify them and devise ways of conserving them along with the state biodiversity board. So far the college has collected 90 species from the region and identified them based on their basic morphological or external features. Studies of identifying them on the basis of molecular markers using the mitochondrial DNA base technique will be done in the next stage," he said.

R D Kalorey, acting associate dean of college, says that since it is just the beginning of the project there are no separate funds. Once a technical paper is published based on the preliminary work, the college will be in a position to prepare a proposal to seek funds for a planned project for large scale identification and conservation of local species of fish in the region and state. The college is already in the process of preparing a document on its findings of the 90 species identified so far.