Gujarat: The campaign against the killing of Whale Shark launched in February by the Wildlife Trust of India and the International Fund for Animal Welfare has started making waves in coastal towns of the western Indian state of Gujarat . The first ripples appeared with the launch of a street play with a message on protecting the Whale Shark on the International Theatre Day at Mithapur, Gujarat on March 27. The performers traveled along the coast of Gujarat and staged 16 performances in 12 towns. The group carried the play through major fishing harbors and ports, such as Beyt Dwarka, Somnath, Veraval, and Okha. The series of performances culminated at Diu on April 2. The play was conceptualized to spread awareness and build sensitivity among the fishing community on the coast of Gujarat about whale sharks. The story touched popular sentiment because it carried forth the message of the immensely popular spiritual leader, Morari Bapu who formally launched the campaign in Gujarat as an ambassador for the Whale Shark. In his address at the launch of the campaign, Morari Bapu likened the Whale Shark visiting the shores of Gujarat to a daughter visiting her parents and said, it was indeed sad that fishermen hunted this gentle giant instead of protecting it and creating an environment conducive for it to breed.

There were large crowds at the play and the fishing community came out in large numbers, especially women and children, who are a key audience of this campaign. At Okha, the Coast Guard showed their appreciation and offered total co-operation in protecting the whale shark. The Divisional Forest Officer of Sassan Gir put in a special request for the group to perform at Sassan Gir, the lion sanctuary which is the pride of Gujarat . At Mithapur, a fisherman agreed that this fish is harmless and it should not be killed. He also offered to help in spreading the message for protecting the whale shark.

The state of Gujarat has the longest coastline in India . It is ironical that the very state which is the birthplace of the champion of non-violence, Mahatma Gandhi is party to the gruesome slaughter of these harmless creatures. Commercial harvesting of the Whale Shark, the world’s biggest fish and one of the gentlest creatures of the sea reaches its peak during April-July off the coasts of Gujarat . The first harpoon fishery, noticed off Veraval in 1986, engaged itself in local extraction of shark liver oil. Though till about 1990, its fins were discarded, suddenly, in 1991, there was a demand for pectoral, dorsal and caudal fins of the Whale Shark. Post 1991, most of the Whale Shark’s body parts were being sold – liver, fins, cartilage, skin and meat. The separation of parts and removal of liver and other body parts is done at Veraval while its neighboring townships, like Okha are involved in its transport.

The whale shark was upgraded to the Schedule I of the Wildlife (Protection) Act in May 2001. Although poaching has greatly reduced subsequent to this, legal protection is not enough. It is extremely difficult to continuously patrol the nearly 1600 km Gujarat coastline, which is one-third of the entire coastline of India . Official figures reveal that before 2001, over 150 whale sharks were poached along the Gujarat coast. Independent figures however put this number at 500. this was particularly alarming because the Whale Shark does not attain sexual maturity before the age of 30 years, and killing this fish at this rate would pose a serious threat to its breeding and in turn upset the fragile marine ecosystem. Building awareness among the locals about this fish was thus perceived as the key to protection of this fish.

Close on the heels of the street play, WTI plans to reinforce the message in these fishing harbors by unveiling a life-sized inflatable model of a Whale Shark. This colorful campaign will kick off next week in Mithapur and travel along the coastal fishing towns of Gujarat . Watch this space for updates of the splash that this campaign aims to make.