Koraput: In can be considered as a proud moment for Odisha, researchers have discovered two Mahseer fish species, Tor tor and Tor putitora, in the Indravati River of the state.
According to reports, the researchers from the Central University of Odisha, led by Prof. Sharat Kumar Palita, the Dean of the School of Biodiversity and Conservation of Natural Resources (SBCNR), Koraput, recorded the Mahseer fish species which belong to the Cyprinidae family.
Apart from Prof. Palita, research scholar Alok Kumar Naik and Anirban Mahata, played the vital role in discovering the Tor tor and Tor putitora after a six-year study. They identified the species from fish samples obtained at the Indravati Reservoir at Mukhiguda in Kalahandi, Kapur Dam in Nabarangpur, and the Khatiguda market in Nabarangpur and confirmed by the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI), Kolkata.
Sources said that the Tor tor and Tor putitora are known for a large-bodied freshwater carps revered as sacred in many Hindu temples and are considered one of the 20 mega fish species of the world.
Reports said that it is for the first time that Tor tor was recorded in the Indravati River for the first time though was spotted earlier in rivers like the Mahanadi, Brahmani, and Similipal. Likewise, the Tor putitora—commonly known as the Golden Mahseer—is recorded in the Godavari River system for the first time. Previously it was found only in the Himalayan foothills and rivers like the Narmada in central India.
