Whale shark saved off Sutrapada Coast Junagadh District.
A whale shark weighing five tones was rescued from off the Sutrapada coast in Junagadh district and released in the sea unscathed in a joint mission by the forest officials and local nature club members on Tuesday.
Dinesh Goswami, president of the Nature's Club told TOI, "We received a message about the whale shark being caught in the net in the morning and rushed there along with forest officials."
The animal was saved by cutting as many as 15 nets of Ratnasagar boat owned by Bhaidas Jadav. "It was at least 25-feet-long shark, a male and weighed five tones. It took us three hours to de-tangle the nets and let it go. However, the animal was not injured at all," said Goswami who was accompanied by Jignesh Gohil in the mission.
Assistant conservator of forests PH Babariya said, "We received a call from Goswami and rushed a team of forest officials to the spot. They left in three boats and got out the animal safely."
Incidentally, this is the second incidence of whale shark rescue in this season. Earlier, one had been saved on November 23 from the same region. Nature club has been involved in saving 112 of these animals.
The cause of saving this endangered species, which come to the Gujarat coast, has been ongoing since the past few years. The cause of "Save the Whale Shark" had been taken up by religious guru Morari Bapu along with the forest department.
Bapu had administered a pledge to his followers to consider the whale, which comes to the Indian coast to give birth, as their daughter who has come home for child birth and guard them.
The whale shark, which migrates in winters from Africa to Gujarat coast, was placed under schedule I of wildlife (Protection) Act in 2001.Over 171 sharks have been saved off the Gujarat coast since 2005.
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