Ahmedabad: A popular religious leader, wildlife conservation NGOs, the forest department and two major business corporations have come together in a unique partnership to protect an endangered species off the coast of Gujarat, the Whale Shark. The partnership was fostered by the Wildlife Trust of India(WTI), its partner the International Fund for Animal Welfare(IFAW) and brought together the well known Guru, Shri Morari Bapu, the Gujarat Forest Department, Tata Chemicals Ltd and the Gujarat Heavy Chemical Ltd to launch the Save The Whale Shark Campaign.

Launching the campaign as an Ambassador for the cause Morari Bapu, whose discourses are attended by hundreds of thousands of people, said: “This marvel of nature and a gift of God, should be the pride of Gujarat.” The ambassadorship was conferred on him by the Chief Wildlife Warden of Gujarat, Mr Pradeep Khanna.

Morari Bapu vowed to use his discourses to spread the message of ‘ahimsa hi param dharma’ and ‘atithi devo bhava’ among the fisherfolk to create awareness about the plight of the whale shark, known to be a regular visitor to the state’s coast.”We have always believed in non-violence and honouring our guests has been a tradition down the ages. This message needs to permeate to the people who make a living out of killing this animal,” he said, formally launching the campaign here on Tuesday.

“The people need to be told that ‘prem'(love) and karuna’ (compassion) towards ‘jeev’ (animals) is also dharma. I have learnt that these creatures come to the Gujarat coast to breed. So, it can be likened to the daughter coming home to give birth to her child and then, it becomes our responsibility to take care of her,” said Morari Bapu.

This is the first time that a popular religious leader in India is taking up the cause of wildlife conservation, tying up with an NGO and the forest department, with corporate support.

“Adarniya Morari Bapu, WTI and forest department are today laying foundation for instilling moral and ethical values in the conservation effort in their own small way. It has the potential to turn into a movement in times to come and add a new dimension to the wildlife conservation,” the chief wildlife warden, Mr Khanna said.

“Our culture, traditions and beliefs promote the right to life for all living beings. Instilling the sense of conservation in the people on the basis of religious beliefs is a better and a more permanent way of protecting our natural heritage than policing,” he said.

“Gujarat takes pride in welcoming and taking care of winged visitors from far off countries. Today we add to that one of the species of fish species that visits us in significant numbers and we have little knowledge about it,” Mr Khanna added.

The Whale shark, which was the first fish to be included in the Schedule I of the Indian Wildlife Protection Act, used to be slaughtered in large numbers off the Gujarat coast for its oil and meat, which was being exported to south east Asian countries. Although its hunting and trade is banned after the notification, its trade in small numbers may still be continuing.

WTI, which is partnered by the International Fund for Animal Welfare(IFAW), has launched this campaign to make the people, especially those living off the coast of Gujarat, aware about the environmental value of this gigantic fish.

The campaign was considered necessary after WTI commissioned a survey by the well-known international market research agency, TNS Mode, whose preliminary results said that the general awareness about the whale shark was very low in Gujarat. The final results of the quantitative analysis are awaited.

“Based on the results of this survey our strategy will be to first create general awareness about this fish and then use that to create a potential for tourism based on the experience in Australia and South Africa, where this is an organized business on the lines of whale watching. We will seek the support of the centre, state as well as international agencies for this,” Aniruddha Mookerjee, Director of Programmes, WTI said.

The campaign is funded by two of India’s largest corporations, which have industrial units on the Gujarat coast, Tata Chemicals Ltd and the Gujarat Heavy Chemicals Ltd.

“Tata Chemicals is proud to be associated with the campaign to save the graceful, gentle marine giant, the whale shark. Apart from material support to this cause, our employees and their families are excited about the prospects of being involved in this conservation project, and are eagerly awaiting to donate their time, talent and skills for this. On behalf of our organisation, I hope we can all soon achieve our common mission of total protection of this wonderful creature, and flourishing marine eco-tourism that has the whale shark as an integral part if it,” ” Mr Vivek Talwar, Head HR, Admin and Community Development, Tata Chemicals said.

Echoing his sentiments, Mr. Raju Thakur, PRO , Gujarat Heavy Chemicals said, “GHCL has always been committed to community development, with especial emphasis on awareness education related to environment and health. We are very glad to a part of this movement and are committed to working with WTI to ensure a safe haven for the Whale Shark and thereby it’s long term survival”.

According to a trade survey conducted by TRAFFIC India in 2001, the commercial harvesting of Whale Sharks in India for export was non-existent till the 1980’s though it was hunted for its liver as early as 1955 – 1960. 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 Government banned fishing and trade of the whale shark in May 2001 by placing the endangered fish in Schedule-I of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, thereby granting it highest legal protection. Prior to this, most states based their local laws on the Indian Fisheries Act of

1987 that protects fish in certain areas by prohibiting some activities like use of dynamite and poison.