Around 20,000 fingerlings of Manipur state fish ‘Pengba (Osteobrama Belangeri)’ was released in Sendra island along the Loktak Lake in Bishnupur district on Tuesday for in situ conservation by officials of the Central Inland Fisheries Research Institute (CIFRI) in association with the State Fisheries department.
It was a part of the ICAR-CIFRI’s flagship ranching programme carried out in a phased manner under the initiative of ICAR-CIFRI Barrackpore, West Bengal director BK Das and Fisheries director H Balkrisna Singh.
The ranching programme was a step towards rejuvenation of the depleted stock of Pengba in its natural and original habitat. Subsequent ranching programmes are also in the pipeline in coming months.
Pengba which is a near threatened indigenous medium carp endemic to Manipur was a major seasonal fish in the state contributing around 40 per cent of the natural fishery some decades back.
In the recent past, the population of Pengba declined significantly in the lake and was declared “extinct in wild” as per IUCN Red list, though some progressive fish farmers have cultivated it as captive farming.
The programme was also attended by ICAR-CIFRI regional centre, Guwahati head BK Bhattacharjya, senior scientists Sona Yengkokpam and SCS Das, scientists NS Singh, T Nirupada Chanu and K Dineshwar Singh, DFO, Bishnupur along with fishers and local leaders of Sendra Island.
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