New Delhi, Oct. 15 -- The discovery of hundreds, possibly thousands, of dead fish along the Yamuna riverbank in Delhi's Burari has raised concerns over the health of the river's aquatic ecosystem, with experts flagging possible toxic pollution and inadequate environmental flows as contributing factors.
The cause of the fish deaths, reported on Wednesday evening, has not yet been established.
Radhey Shyam Sharma, head of the Department of Environmental Studies at Delhi University, said the sudden death of thousands of fish could indicate a sharp increase in contaminants in the water, including a possible toxic discharge.
"Sudden mass death of fish always signifies a sudden spike in some contaminant or some kind of toxic discharge, because fish are biological indicators and their death signifies a disbalance," he said. Sharma warned that such pollutants could potentially seep into groundwater, posing health risks.
He said even relatively small quantities of effluents could harm aquatic life if pollutant concentrations exceeded permissible limits, potentially causing reproductive and morphological abnormalities in fish.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.