16
problems. They play an active role in raising
environment issue at state, national and international levels. These NOGs include the World
Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), Asian Wetland
Bureau (AWB), the Sahabat Alam Malaysia
(SAM), the Environmental Protection Society of
Malaysia (EPSM) and the Consumers Association
of Penang (CAP) with their associated networks
such as the Tropical Rainforest network and
the Asian and Pacifi c Environmental network
(APPEN). The International Organization of
Consumer Unions (IOCU) has a base in Malaysia,
but their involvement in environmental issues is
focused at the regional and international levels
rather than at national levels. The long established (51 years) Malayan Nature Society (MNS)
is also an active NGO.
1.11 Limnology in India:
An Overview
Limnology in India has been an important aspect
of study which has been exercising its profound
infl uence on the scientifi c study in India. The discipline, at its dawn, had been dealt with by some
eminent personalities, thus beginning the exposition of exploratory informations about water
bodies in relation to different ecological, sociological and biological studies. With the passage
of time, the Science of Limnology in India
expanded its horizon embracing different disciplines and, ultimately, grew to an enormous and
potential reservoir of information through the
epoch-making contributions of legendary fi gures.
An account of some of the limnologists in India,
along with their contributions, is briefl y given
below. Time and space may not permit a detailed
discourse of the subject in the present treatise.
Hence, a compromise had to be brought in
between length and depth. Nevertheless, its
brevity would be compensated at the earliest
available opportunity.
Limnological study is done in many universities, institutes, colleges, etc. as part and parcel of
their regular work. Further, limnology is a subject
of intricate research in almost all the universities
and institutes dealing with Fishery Science. Almost
all the universities in India have a course on
limnology (and fi shery) at both undergraduate
(UG) and postgraduate (PG) levels. Further, different institutes of the Government of India
(GOI), notably the Ministry of Agriculture, the
Indian Council of Agriculture Research (ICAR),
Ministry of Environment and Forests (MOEF),
Ministry of Water Resources and so on, have
been doing large amount of works in the fi eld of
limnology and fi shery. Many works have been
done on limnology (and fi shery) of the major
lotic and lentic systems of India. These include
limnological works done in major rivers like
the Ganges, Brahmaputra, Indus, Yamuna, Barak,
Chindwin, Kolodyne, Gomati, Teesta, Koshi,
Gandak, Sone, Mahanadi, Godavari, Krishna,
Kaveri and Narmada. Concomitantly, major
lentic bodies in which limnological works are
done are Chilika, Loktak, Sone Beel, Deepor
Beel, Umiam Lake, Ganga Lake, Kolleru Lake,
Pulicat Lake, Nagarjunasagar, Tungabhadra
Reservoir, Bhavanisagar Reservoir, Ropar Lake,
Harike Lake, Ramgarh Lake, various tanks in
Karnataka, Dal Lake and so on. Many scientists,
research scholars and students and a large number of NGOs have been involved in such studies.
There have been several research contributions in
different journals in India and abroad. In brief,
signifi cant works of some of the eminent scholars
in the fi eld of limnology in India are as follows:
Ahmed ( 1954 ); Arora ( 1962 , 1963 ); Banerjea
and Ghosh ( 1970 ); Barbhuiya et al. ( 2009 );
Baruah ( 1964 ); Bhatia ( 1936 ); Bhattacharya
( 1980 ); Bhuyan ( 1970 ); Biswas, K ( 1934 );
Biswas, S ( 1964a , b ); Banerjea ( 1967 ); Battish
( 1992 ); Biswas and Calder ( 1955 , 1984 ); Chacko
and Krishnamurthy ( 1954 ); Chacko and Ganapati
( 1950 ); Chacko et al. ( 1953 ); Chakraborty et al.
( 1959 , 1972) ; Das and Srivastava ( 1955 , 1956 );
Das ( 1961 ); Das and Abhtar ( 1976 ); Datta ( 2003 );
David et al. ( 1959 ); David ( 1969 ); Dey ( 1981 );
Dey and Kar ( 1987 , 1989a , b , c , 1994 ); Dey and
Goswami ( 1979 , 1982 ); Dey and Lahon ( 1980 );
Dey and Das ( 1982 ); Dey et al. ( 1982a , b );
Dhanapati ( 1974 , 1975 ); Dixit ( 1937 ); Gadgil
and Kar ( 2000 ); Ganapati ( 1940a , b , c , 1941 );
Geetarani et al. ( 2010 ); George ( 1961 , 1962 ,
1968 ); Govind ( 1963 ); Hussainy ( 1967 ); Iyengar
1 Introduction
problems. They play an active role in raising
environment issue at state, national and international levels. These NOGs include the World
Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), Asian Wetland
Bureau (AWB), the Sahabat Alam Malaysia
(SAM), the Environmental Protection Society of
Malaysia (EPSM) and the Consumers Association
of Penang (CAP) with their associated networks
such as the Tropical Rainforest network and
the Asian and Pacifi c Environmental network
(APPEN). The International Organization of
Consumer Unions (IOCU) has a base in Malaysia,
but their involvement in environmental issues is
focused at the regional and international levels
rather than at national levels. The long established (51 years) Malayan Nature Society (MNS)
is also an active NGO.
1.11 Limnology in India:
An Overview
Limnology in India has been an important aspect
of study which has been exercising its profound
infl uence on the scientifi c study in India. The discipline, at its dawn, had been dealt with by some
eminent personalities, thus beginning the exposition of exploratory informations about water
bodies in relation to different ecological, sociological and biological studies. With the passage
of time, the Science of Limnology in India
expanded its horizon embracing different disciplines and, ultimately, grew to an enormous and
potential reservoir of information through the
epoch-making contributions of legendary fi gures.
An account of some of the limnologists in India,
along with their contributions, is briefl y given
below. Time and space may not permit a detailed
discourse of the subject in the present treatise.
Hence, a compromise had to be brought in
between length and depth. Nevertheless, its
brevity would be compensated at the earliest
available opportunity.
Limnological study is done in many universities, institutes, colleges, etc. as part and parcel of
their regular work. Further, limnology is a subject
of intricate research in almost all the universities
and institutes dealing with Fishery Science. Almost
all the universities in India have a course on
limnology (and fi shery) at both undergraduate
(UG) and postgraduate (PG) levels. Further, different institutes of the Government of India
(GOI), notably the Ministry of Agriculture, the
Indian Council of Agriculture Research (ICAR),
Ministry of Environment and Forests (MOEF),
Ministry of Water Resources and so on, have
been doing large amount of works in the fi eld of
limnology and fi shery. Many works have been
done on limnology (and fi shery) of the major
lotic and lentic systems of India. These include
limnological works done in major rivers like
the Ganges, Brahmaputra, Indus, Yamuna, Barak,
Chindwin, Kolodyne, Gomati, Teesta, Koshi,
Gandak, Sone, Mahanadi, Godavari, Krishna,
Kaveri and Narmada. Concomitantly, major
lentic bodies in which limnological works are
done are Chilika, Loktak, Sone Beel, Deepor
Beel, Umiam Lake, Ganga Lake, Kolleru Lake,
Pulicat Lake, Nagarjunasagar, Tungabhadra
Reservoir, Bhavanisagar Reservoir, Ropar Lake,
Harike Lake, Ramgarh Lake, various tanks in
Karnataka, Dal Lake and so on. Many scientists,
research scholars and students and a large number of NGOs have been involved in such studies.
There have been several research contributions in
different journals in India and abroad. In brief,
signifi cant works of some of the eminent scholars
in the fi eld of limnology in India are as follows:
Ahmed ( 1954 ); Arora ( 1962 , 1963 ); Banerjea
and Ghosh ( 1970 ); Barbhuiya et al. ( 2009 );
Baruah ( 1964 ); Bhatia ( 1936 ); Bhattacharya
( 1980 ); Bhuyan ( 1970 ); Biswas, K ( 1934 );
Biswas, S ( 1964a , b ); Banerjea ( 1967 ); Battish
( 1992 ); Biswas and Calder ( 1955 , 1984 ); Chacko
and Krishnamurthy ( 1954 ); Chacko and Ganapati
( 1950 ); Chacko et al. ( 1953 ); Chakraborty et al.
( 1959 , 1972) ; Das and Srivastava ( 1955 , 1956 );
Das ( 1961 ); Das and Abhtar ( 1976 ); Datta ( 2003 );
David et al. ( 1959 ); David ( 1969 ); Dey ( 1981 );
Dey and Kar ( 1987 , 1989a , b , c , 1994 ); Dey and
Goswami ( 1979 , 1982 ); Dey and Lahon ( 1980 );
Dey and Das ( 1982 ); Dey et al. ( 1982a , b );
Dhanapati ( 1974 , 1975 ); Dixit ( 1937 ); Gadgil
and Kar ( 2000 ); Ganapati ( 1940a , b , c , 1941 );
Geetarani et al. ( 2010 ); George ( 1961 , 1962 ,
1968 ); Govind ( 1963 ); Hussainy ( 1967 ); Iyengar
1 Introduction