Gujarat's Forest Department has temporarily banned fishing in the Narmada river following the first-ever sighting of a Dolphin in waters near Shuklatirth and Angeshwar areas, about 80 km from here.
SK Pandya, Ranger Forest Officer, today said "it was necessary to do so as Dolphin falls into protected category of species and the fishermen have been asked not to do fishing in the river."
Environmentalists are surprised at the sighting of the aquatic mammal, famous for performing acrobatic figures, in the river. They said the fish might have been swept into the river from the Arabian sea during the `Fayan' cyclone earlier this week.
Authorities have been waiting for a high tide to enable the Dolphin to go back into the sea and if that does not happen they may use mechanised boats to drive the fish into the sea.
Meanwhile, the fish has been attracting a large number of people, including tourists.
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