Dwindling the Major Indigenous Freshwater Fish Species-An Ecological Meltdown Scenario to Local Environmental Sustainability: A Bio-geographical Study on Khejuri over Coastal Medinipur

Ecological Meltdown is a reminder, a warning bell to human species that we are not the only one on this planet. Whatever nature has provided is for all the living beings on this earth to share. But we in our greed, in the name of our development, are encroaching on the right of others by the sheer arrogance of being the superior most species. In case of the territory of Khejuri Blocks which came into existence as a consequence of coalescence of twin sister islands-Kedgeree and Hijili and emerged as small riverine islands along the western bank of Hooghly estuary, it is not exceptional. This area has undergone not only various morphological and environmental changes throughout its geological history but also witnessed social, political and economic transformations under Mughal, Portuguese and British rules with tremendous unchecked and explosive population. All such transformations have brought about alternations of in livelihoods of local people and economy of the area under consideration. In most recent, Khejuri is being experienced by newer techno-agricultural system from its past trend, more profitable brick manufacturing and fish farming and efforts towards coastal tourism. As a result, last one decade of Khejuri reflects a large scale of land use change where most of the typical and periodic wetlands which are the feeding and breeding grounds of all indigenous fish species and other aquatic lives have, loosened its existence quickly. Due to this rapid habitat loss, unregulated or illegal killing or collection of those indigenous species, unplanned application of chemical fertilizers, pesticides, fungicides and insecticides, soil, land and water pollution from foresaid activities, competition of those species with other species, evolving newer diseases and also predation a remarkable number of fresh water indigenous fish species have been threatened in different ways. This is one of the typical scenarios of loss of fish diversity responsible to exploitation of local fish resources and also destruction of aquatic ecosystem. This zoo-geographical as well as geo-environmental study and analysis reveal also that considerable of declining indigenous fish resources. The results of the study clearly indicate the socio-economic and environmental cost of eroding fish resources side by side and reflect an ecological melt down scenario in local environmental atmosphere which is not viable livelihood option for this coastal region in terms of its environmental sustainability.