Whale Sharks: India
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2004: Save Whale Shark campaign
Uday Mahurkar
January 30, 2009 The fishermen on the Saurashtra and Kutch coast in Gujarat are saving whale sharks, courtesy the Save Whale Shark campaign launched by the WTI and the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) in 2004. Since then, the fishermen have saved close to 100 whale sharks, releasing the giant fish soon after they are trapped. The campaign is an example now, involving a large cross-section of society including animal protection activists, government machinery, corporate entities like Tata Chemicals Ltd and Gujarat Heavy Chemical Ltd and leading figures. Says Dhiresh Joshi, coordinator of the Gujarat unit of WTI, “It is an awesome experience to see the gentle giant in front of your eyes.” WTI’s masterstroke was involving the hugely popular Ramayana Kathakar Morari Bapu, whose mass appeal, particularly in Gujarat, is almost unmatched, as the brand ambassador of the campaign. In his first press conference in 2004 after joining the campaign, Bapu appealed to the fishermen, “Whale sharks come to the Saurashtra’s coast to breed during winter. It comes to its parents’ home to deliver. In that sense, it is just like our daughter. And how can we possibly kill our own daughter?” The rhetoric left many mesmerised, and such was the impact that activists like Goswami of the Prakriti Parivar Trust (PPT), who is now at the forefront of the campaign, joined hands with the forest and fisheries departments and private businessmen like Prakash Jadav to plunge into the campaign, often spending money from their own pockets. Both Goswami and Jadav organised a ‘Save Whale Shark’ yatra that targeted coastal fishing villages. The WTI was itself inspired by a documentary, Shores of Silence, made by wildlife filmmaker Mike Pandey. The documentary depicted the travails of the whale shark, an endangered species which was being hunted by fishermen on the Saurashtra coast when it came to breed in warm water. Shores of Silence won the Green Oscar and played a key role in convincing the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests in banning fishing of the whale shark in Indian waters. Pandey was attracted to the project because of the method of entrapment using hooks and empty barrels which would prevent the fish from escaping by diving deep under. The fishermen then would drag it to the coast where they would have already struck a deal with a fish trader who would later sell its various parts for substantial sums of money. Says Kamlesh Chamadia, a wealthy fisherman and a fish trader, “There’s not a single body part of the whale shark which can’t be used by humans and doesn’t fetch a price. Before the current campaign began, the fishermen rejoiced every time they caught a whale shark.” Saving the whale shark also opens up avenues for India to explore its potential for sea tourism. It is a major tourism industry in Philippines, Mexico, some African countries but mainly in Australia where it is a major revenue spinner.
In brief
A WTI survey reveals that in 2000, over 500 whale sharks were hunted by fishermen on the Saurashtra Coast.
A 2000 documentary,Shores of Silence, plays a key role in convincing the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests in banning the fishing of whale shark in Indian waters.
In 2004, the WTI and IFAW launch the ‘Save Whale Shark’ campaign.
Local activists and businessmen join the campaign. Ramayana Kathakar Morari Bapu is appointed the ambassador of the campaign.
The state Government grants monetary incentives to local fishermen for damage to boats and nets.
So far the fishermen on the Saurashtra coast have saved 100 whale sharks.
