Guwahati, Sept. 29 -- A consignment of Channa fish was intercepted and seized at the Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International (LGBI) Airport in Guwahati on Tuesday (September 29), amid growing scrutiny over the movement of rare snakehead fish from Assam and concerns that protected Channa barca may be passed off as a legally tradable species.

The seizure assumes significance against the backdrop of recent cases involving the alleged illegal transportation of Channa barca, commonly known as the Barca snakehead, and a legal distinction between the protected species and other closely related Channa varieties.

The Gauhati High Court, in a judgment delivered on July 17, 2026, held that Channa stewartii, Channa bleheri and Channa aurantimacula...