Conservation of fish in selected water bodies

(1) The Government may make rules for the purpose hereinafter mentioned in this section and may by notification in the Gazette, apply all or any of such rules to inland water bodies specified in the said notification: Provided that decision relating to water bodies under the control of Local Self Government Institutions shall be taken in consultation with the Local self Government Institutions concerned. (2) Government may prohibit fishing or the use of any fishing vessel or net in any public water body except under a license granted by the authorised officer for this purpose and in accordance with the terms and conditions specified therein. (3) All or any of the following matters may be limited or restricted or prohibited either temporarily or permanently, by rules:— (a) the construction of weirs or barriers or artificial bunds or water blocks or fences; (b) the dimensions and type of fishing devices used for fishing or for catching any species of fish as exclusively specified and the manner of using such devices and the mesh size of fishing nets; (c) the minimum size or weight below which no fish or any species of fish as specified shall be caught or stocked or sold; (d) the destruction or weakening of fish or fisheries by pollution or by retting of coconut husk or by industrial and domestic effluents in solid or liquid form or by chemicals or by spraying pesticides; (e) the collection of clam, mussel, oyster, shell and the transport of their meat or shell or both; (f) the filtration of fish and prawns in private water body; (g) the attraction of fish or to cause their migration to any water bodies either by the use of sluice openings, alluring lights or by any means and by any other contrivances or catching fish or preventing their escape by any means whatsoever; (h) destruction or converting in a manner which will endanger the existing ecological condition of any water body by any means; (i) propagation, rearing and marketing of fish species which is not indigenous; (j) which all devices or nets be used for fishing in estuaries or in the premises of protected fish sanctuaries; (k) catching and marketing fish having reproductive capacity from any public water bodies, using net or appliance; (l) disturbing the ecological condition which is connected with natural water bodies or wetland areas; (m) catching, stocking and marketing species of ornamental fish from public water bodies in the inland sector; (n) catching, stocking or marketing indigenous species of fish which are facing extinction; (o) fishing in inland water bodies by using vessel fitted with motor or mechanised fishing boats or nets.