INDIANANGLER

Ravi, I doubt it. Technically both camps fall under the jurisdiction of the Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary.

As per the Indian Forest Act, the following activities are not allowed inside protected areas.

"capturing, coursing, snaring, trapping, driving or baiting any wild or captive animal and every attempt to do so;";"

http://www.wildlifetrustofindia.org/pub ... ckoner.pdf

The current ban is only applicable to the stretches of the Cauvery which pass through wildlife sanctuaries and National Parks.

Bopanna

God Help them if Forest Dept is taking Over the stretch,

Once have come across an senior Forest Offifial ,who had No Idea what Mahseer is & was really surprised seeing me Releasing a good size Mahseer

Another update on this issue, image below from Deccan Herald

Hey Guys, To start of with the article discusses Mahseer fishing on the Cauvery and they've got a picture of a golden Mahseer from the North! So much for them knowing what they're talking about. Alas it's the same all over this country. A ban on Mahseer fishing is most probably going to only lead to the extinction of one of the greatest fighting sport fish that ever swam and the authorities won't even know the difference, forget about them even caring.
I can say I've been lucky enough to have had the opportunity to go fishing on the Cauvery for over 10 years and it's been truly special. A pity, it'll have to become a story I'll have to tell my kids one day.
I personally believe the fate of the Tiger and the Mahseer go hand in hand. Going by how the Tiger is doing in this country, this day makes me truly sad. I hope I don't have to carry the burden of seeing these 2 magnificent animals disappear during my lifetime.

Regards,
Mighty Marlin.

Ok, after having received a number of frantic calls from acorss the country on this one... here are my 2 cents on the whole situation:

First things first gentelmen... Please comprehend what you read. Seems to me the power of comprehension is diminishing at a very alarming rate along with our fish species!

I ENDORSE THE BAN!

Don't get me wrong, i'm nutty about angling and a lot of members on IA will vouch accordingly, and spend a lot of time by the waters edge.

As far as the ban goes, it follows the SC ruling made about 4 years back regarding the alarming 'rings of concrete' surrounding our sanctuaries and national parks. No more resorts pls. We are basically invading the last places the folks of the wild have... Look at what a sorry state a park like Corbett is in and on the other side look at Ranthambore (Parks in the north)! They are two complete opposites of each other. In one park, you can party on the inside, where as in the other you have to clear out by sunset. And beyond the timings, look at the wildlife pops in both places and you'll see the difference. The same story applies to the mahseer, other species and our water bodies in general.


The so called Ban in Karnataka is exactly the same as the one that happened in Corbett in '87. You can fish AROUND the borders of the park (permit and ghille costs around Rs. 2500/day), but you can't fish IN the park. Courtsy TN Seshan (I wonder which state he was from). Look at the fishing around Corbett... The mahseer is omnipresent in the rivers cause it has a nearby PROTECTED breeding sanctuary!

Each lake/river/ocean should have what I feel are “No Take Zones” where the aquatic inhabitants are protected. These wild protected eco systems encourage the survival of a specices; namely the mahseer, golden or silver. These 'no take zones' can be created in lakes, ponds, rivers and oceans. I have done this exercise on 2 very very large lakes and I know that it works brilliantly.

The anglers of the Cauvery, should take this so called 'ban', in better spirit (or with it). Its for the good of the river and the Deccan Mahseer. Follow the lead of WASI, a.k.a Wildlife Association of South India.

Anyone know where is Rustam Bana?

From what I have seen WASI do with a stretch of water is amazing. Prevent dynamiting and illeagl netting! Make the poachers angling guides and ghillies. They need a source of income. Blasting the river or your wallet doesn't matter, its the same to them.

Long story short gentelmen, in the long run, its good for the fishing. Riposte!

Project Tiger being a failure is another story... Political @ that!

Gypsy,

That makes sense.


Jeen

Perfect common sense Gypsy .... I am with you on this one .....

At least we all are talking on the fish we love! May my grandchildren enjoy the sheer joy of fishing a mountain river for Mahseer!

[quote="indiangypsy"]It is no point hammering things off on a keyboard!!! I say get off your backsides, and walk up to the Karnataka govt and tell them your team wants to protect the waters!!! Let's see how they say no!!!

I regret saying this, but it seem a lot of anglers here are near sighted with vested interests!!!

Hi I.Gypsy
It is with great uncomfort I read the above post of yours. You think people do not have anything better to do rather than sitting in front of the screen and hammering into the key board? I strongly condemn such statements.
You know why we all of us are in this forum? Is it not because of the fish and fishing? We love to fish and more over we love to conserve the area we fish in.
Just take the classic example to trout fishing at Nilgiris. Earlier we were issued license to fish the upper waters of Nilgiris bio-sphere. We were happily fishing and we were also preserving not only the waters but also the sanctuary by keeping a vigil on the poachers (of fish and other wild life). Then suddenly some so called wise guy from the forest dept decided to ban Trout fishing in Nilgiris. This all happened because a few of us red handedly caught some of the fisheries department/EB department guys unauthorisedly NETTING for the trout. Today the genuine anglers are deprived of trout fishing. Even today you stay at the Avalanche guest house and you will be served with hot piping dish of trout for your dinner, by the forest guys (provided you take care of them PROPERLY).
Do you mean to say that this same sort of thing should happen at Galibore or the other stretches of Cauvery?
As an angler I have personally visited the Cattle Patti villages at galibore and destroyed the nets they were using to catch fish with. This happened while our tackle were stolen by fish poachers from the village. It is a big story and i do not want to narrate it here.
Do understand something. We are all in this forum because we love to fish. The question is are we treating this sport responsibly or not!!!! I am cent percent sure that the Galibore anglers have taken this as a responsible sport, not only releasing the Mahseer that have been caught and also keeping the poachers away from the area.
Just put some thought into it.
HAPPY FISHING. TIGHT LINES.

Ravi

Sorry guys, having trouble being sure of the facts here. Has there actually been any sort of ban imposed now or is this something being talked about that might happen?

Guy's lets not make this topic one of those heated arguments. This post is simply to keep members informed on the current status of the ban.

What is most worrying is that there are thirty odd staff at Bheemeshwari and Galiborai who currently work as ghillies for visiting anglers. Most of these people are local fishermen who have been given jobs to prevent them from netting the fish. If the fishing ban stays in place then these people are going be without a job and will probably will go back to their old ways.

Harvey, if you read the second para of the newspaper article above, you will see that JLR has been asked to suspend fishing for the time being.

Bopanna

Hi Guys, I agree with Bops about keeping the heated arguments out for now. Think it's best we wait and see what pans out.

I believe that every area is unique and has to be handled differently. What's unique with the Cauvery, particularly the stretch between Sangam and Dhodmakalli is that it falls in the Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary and has had angling for over 30 years. It's the Angling and the Anglers that have ensured the survival of the Mahseer. There are stretches of the river inside the park that are still being poached and no Mahseer of size being caught. I so hope the 'proposed ban' doesn't lead to this stretch going the way of the rest of the Cauvery.

If ever this issue is open for discussion, I'm sure answers and remedies will be found on this forum.

Tight Lines,
Mighty Marlin.

Hi guys,

Since many of you on this forum are concerned about the protection of the Mahseer in the CWS,I can inform you that for the season of 2010 -11,JLR has taken the decision to set up anti-poaching / feeding camps. These camps will be set up from Doddamakli to Galibore and not just at Bheemeshwari and Galibore. This decision has been taken by JLR regardless of the ban on fishing in the CWS that the court may order.

I am in touch with JLR regularly and will post any news (whether good or bad) on this thread.

OutrigorSandeep

I on behalf of PH invite all to follow their passion here for Mahseer.$ where there is a will there is a way!!

Cheers

Sammo - By the looks of the Yamuna, you'll be fishing for the mahseer from your bedroom

From a dry place,
GRC

For the time being members can use the submission form in the link given by Mannil.

In a day or two a friend of mine will be meeting with Mr Jairam Ramesh with a report on why this ban should not be allowed. I will keep you all appraised of the results.

Bops

Hi again

I googled and found indiawilds.com and posts by a Tiger Ramesh
saying, in February, that he was going to get angling in Wildlife Areas
banned, specifically in relation to Bush Betta

K

Kevin, this has already been covered in the 4th post in this thread. Please have a read through of the links.

Bopanna

Ive only just joined the forum. Some interesting points being made.
I just want to say that since 2005 Ive travelled to the Cauvery and it is indeed a very special place.. Ive fished in Bush Betta and my first mahsser was a 40lb er landed by the late Subhan.. In all the visits there I never seen guides who looked after the river as well as they did.. Their care for the fish and also for other wildlife would put most of us visitors to shame..
they took us to visit local people and villages and surely these people will lose out if the ban stays..
What is latest news???

Hi all,

Based on the information I have been receiving from various sources, this is what I can report to all members on this forum.
- The Karnataka High Court has passed a stay order suspending fishing inside the Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary.
- I am not aware if the defendant or any other 'interested party' has appealed against this judgement.
- Jungle Lodges is not accepting any fresh bookings from anglers for this season. They are trying to see how best to accomodate anglers who have already made bookings and paid for them.
- While the Bheemeshwari camp falls inside the Sanctuary, the Doddamakli and Galibore camps are either totally or partially outside the Sanctuary. Hence fishing on stretches of the river which are "outside" the Sanctuary should not be a violation of the law.
- As I am not very sure of the boundary of the Sanctuary I will not comment on this. I am trying to get a detailed map of the CWS either from Jungle Lodges or from other sources.

Outrigorsandeep

hi does anybody no yet if its only camp side we are allowed to fish at gailbore ? as far side is in sanctory

Its a little confusing whether the river is open or not.. Although the information here is fairly straightforward and up to date there are still many tour operators selling fishing holidays for the coming season.. And there is not a mention on their sites of the ban..
On another subject does anyone know of availability of good River maps of the Cauvary??