Wildlife Trust of India and Cochin shipyard join hands for safety of whale sharks

KOCHI: The Wildlife Trust of India (WTI) joined hands with Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL) to conduct an awareness campaign about the need to ensure a safe future for whale sharks along the coast of Kerala and Lakshadweep. The campaign was launched on Wednesday as part of Whale Shark Day in Kochi.

According to the WTI release, whale sharks are found all along the coast of India. Since 2001, they have been protected under Schedule I of the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972 – the first fish species in the country to be accorded the highest level of protection. They are found in Kerala and Lakshadweep and face serious threats due to the degradation of the marine ecosystem by pollution, climate change and unsustainable fishing practices.

The campaign began with a rally of students of Sacred Heart Senior Secondary School on Wednesday. The school children were excited to see the 40-feet-long inflatable whale shark placed in the college’s basketball court. “Compared to the long journey a whale shark tagged under our project has taken from the Gujarat coast to the Somalian coast, our conservation action journey from the Gujarat coast to Kerala coast may appear small,” WTI senior professor B C Choudhary said. “The launch of this project in Kerala is a significant collaborative conservation effort by the WTI, Cochin Shipyard Ltd and the Kerala Forest Department in our ongoing efforts to save this gentle giant of the seas.”

Inaugurating the drive, Mayor Soumini Jain promised all support. “We are happy WTI’s Gujarat project, a first of its kind in India, has now made its first expansion to the Kerala coast,” she said. “We are proud to be associated with the project,” said Sunny Thomas, Director (Technical) of Cochin Shipyard Ltd.

Source: http://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/kochi/2017/sep/01/wildlife-trust-of-india-and-cochin-shipyard-join-hands-for-safety-of-whale-sharks-1650916.html