Sand mining, anthropogenic activities altered Kulsi’s river dolphin habitat

Guwahati, June 16: Indiscriminate sand mining, together with mounting industrial and anthropogenic pressure, has almost irreversibly altered a thriving Gangetic river dolphin habitat in the Kulsi River. Once a popular destination for viewing the magnificent aquatic animal, the sightings have become rare nowadays.

The plight of Kulsi, which is among the last few critical habitats of the endangered river dolphin (locally called xihu), also exposed the inertia of the state government and its various authorities.

While conservationists attribute river dolphin habitat loss to unregulated and often illegal sand mining at several upstream and downstream points of the river, the forest department claims that it has been able to put a curb on illegal mining to some extent in recent times.

“We are acting tough on illegal sand mining, especially mechanised mining. Seven mechanised units have been closed down and the machinery seized,” a Forest official told The Assam Tribune.

Even while acknowledging the gravity of the situation, the official said that it was practically impossible to regulate sand mining without support from the local people. “There is a huge demand for the sand of Kulsi in Guwahati and beyond. There are also livelihood concerns as many local people are involved in sand mining.”

“We are trying our best, but it is impossible to regulate sand mining without support from the locals. We have been generating awareness about dolphin conservation among the local populace to effect a positive change in the situation,” the official added.

Such is the damaging extent of sand extraction from the riverbed at Kulsi Chowk Point, where the river bifurcates into two channels, that the water flow to the Kukurmara channel has almost stopped.

“This has dealt a death blow to this once-thriving dolphin habitat along the Kukurmara stretch. Mechanised sand mining might have come down of late, but overall mining still remains largely unregulated. Sluice gates on the Batha/Jagaliya river—one of the major flow sources to Kulsi—have caused restrictions in water flow to Kulsi,” Rajesh Dutta Baruah, a conservationist, said.

A number of unscientifically constructed bridges, too, have altered the water flow regime of Kulsi, fragmenting the dolphin habitat and leaving the animals in almost stranded condition, especially during the winter. All this has also impacted the availability of fish, which constitutes the river dolphin’s major diet.

“Livelihoods have been hit as the fish population in Kulsi has dwindled drastically in recent years. This is a fallout of unrestrained mining, pollution from untreated industrial effluents, and erosion of the river’s links with wetlands,” Debajit Choudhury, a local resident who has been trying to generate awareness on the issues, said.

He said that time is running out fast for Kulsi, and only a mass movement can impel government action.

-By Sivasish Thakur