Bengaluru: Illegal fishing in the Cauvery river, a lifeline of the Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary is posing a serious threat to the vulnerable Marsh Crocodile.
Only recently one crocodile was seen washed ashore dead, entangled in a fishing net, near the Muthathi forest range, by tourists. A photograph shared with Deccan Chronicle confirmed the ghastly incident.
"Fishermen from neighbouring Tamil Nadu routinely come into Karnataka and lay their nets by night," say sources. But Deputy Conservator of Forests (DCF), P Ramesh Kumar of the Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary, claims the department is not aware of the recent death of a crocodile due to illegal fishing.
“A crocodile was, however, seen entangled in a fishing net more than a month ago in the Hogenakkal area under the MM Hills range,” he said,when contacted.
Marsh Crocodile, also known as Mugger Crocodile in India, is protected under Schedule-I of the Wildlife Protection Act 1972 and is categorised as vulnerable in the IUCN Red list of threatened species. The river Cauvery, an important lifeline of the sanctuary, which covers the Hogenakkal falls, Mekedatu, Sangam and Muthathi supports a variety of aquatic fauna like the Marsh Crocodiles, Otters and Masheer fish, which are all at risk now from illegal fishing. .
The forest department has therefore written to the Tamil Nadu government requesting it to declare its side of the Cauvery a protected area and prohibit fishing in it, going by DCF Ramesh Kumar.
