In India there is no formal framework for community-based protection of freshwater ecosystems, unlike in some South-east Asian countries, such as Laos and Myanmar, where community co-managed models of freshwater fish conservation have been successfully implemented. Driven by the need to protect fish and their habitat from exploitative practices, in January 2021 the Khengjang and Yangoulen village councils in Manipur and the Lapalang village council in Meghalaya declared conservation zones in stretches of the river adjoining their villages.
In Manipur, the Khengjang and Yangoulen villages of the Thadou Kuki tribe declared 2.47 km of the Tuivang River as a fish conservation zone, banning all fishing and other human activities that could threaten fish or the river. The biodiversity of the river has not yet been documented, but local fishers say the river provides breeding sites for fish during the monsoon. While monitoring the fish conservation zone, the project team and local communities will document biodiversity and record stream flows.
In Meghalaya, the Lapalang village of the Khasi War tribe is seeking to protect a 250 m stretch of the Rymben River from Jingsum Rimyllim to Jingsum Boit, where deep pools act as refugia for fish, especially during the dry season. Currently, there are 10 species of fish known from this stretch of the river, of which the chocolate mahseer Neolissochilus hexagonolepis, Gray's stone loach Balitora brucei and catfish Glyptothorax striatus are categorized as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List. The next steps in both zones will be to consider the roles of stakeholders, a management strategy, and an implementation framework.
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