GTA appeals people for not fishing for four months

The Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) today appealed to anglers to refrain from fishing for four months from May to ensure smooth breeding of prized fish such as the 'Golden Masher' was not hampered.
"We appeal to anglers not to fish from May to August as this is the breeding period for fish. Illegal fishing activities have pushed several fish species that are once found in abundance to near extinction," GTA Fishery Extension Officer Sarthak Pradhan said today.
Easlier in the last week of April, the GTA has issued a notification banning angling during the May-August period.
In March this year, the GTA released fish hatchlings worth some Rs 23 lakh in the confluences of the Teesta and Rangeet, Doban and Relli and Rambi as well as in the rivers of Mirik. They included the Golden Masher, Katla, Ashala and Sol varieties, a GTA official said.