Guwahati: The Gauhati High Court has directed the Assam government to strictly enforce its ban on community fishing inside the Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve during the upcoming Magh Bihu festival on January 13 and 14.
The directive comes amid growing concern that the annual mass fishing tradition is pushing the park’s fragile ecosystem to the brink.
The order was issued by a Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Ashutosh Kumar and Justice Arun Dev Choudhury, in response to a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by environmental activist Rohit Choudhury.
In his petition, Choudhury highlighted that thousands of people enter the protected park every January to engage in illegal community fishing—often in full view of civil, police, and forest authorities.
During the hearing, the Bench noted that the practice was a clear violation of wildlife protection laws and posed a serious threat to Kaziranga’s biodiversity, including the iconic one-horned rhinoceros, migratory birds, and at least 42 species of fish.
“With these activities going unchecked, the status of the park stands compromised,” the court remarked, underscoring Kaziranga’s global standing as both a UNESCO World Heritage Site and an Important Bird Area.
Counsel for the petitioner, advocate A. Phukan, informed the court that despite the religious and cultural backdrop of Magh Bihu, the unchecked entry of thousands of people into a protected reserve was causing widespread ecological damage.
He argued that the two-day fishing spree amounts to a systematic flouting of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, and disrupts an ecosystem that is already struggling to maintain balance.
In response, D. Gogoi, the Standing Counsel for the Forest Department, acknowledged that district administrations were aware of the issue and regularly issued prohibitory orders.
ALSO READ: RTI activist alleges widespread fraud in Assam’s PM-KISAN rollout, seeks high-level probe
However, he admitted that enforcement remains difficult due to the sheer number of people entering the park “with religious fervour.”
The Bench made it clear that cultural sentiment cannot override legal mandates or ecological responsibility.
“Protection of such sites is necessary, or else there would be a violation of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972; Forest Conservation Act, 1980; constitutional obligations under Article 48A; and international obligations as well,” the court stated.
The High Court directed the state to enforce all prohibitory orders without exception and asked Gogoi to file an affidavit detailing the steps taken to prevent illegal fishing in the first and second weeks of January. The matter will be heard again on January 7.
