River Information System (RIS) & Hilsa Fish

River Information System (RIS) & Hilsa Fish

What is the News?

• To boost cargo movement on Ganga, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari will inaugurate the second phase of river information system (RIS) between Farakka and Patna.
• Under the Jal Marg Vikas Project a new state of the art navigational Lock on NW-1 is being constructed at Farakka at a cost of Rs 361.35 crore and work will be complete by June 2019.

River Information System (RIS)

• RIS is a form of vessel traffic management using next generation technology.
• It is a combination of tracking and meteorological equipment with specialized software designed to optimize traffic and transport processes in inland navigation.
• The system enables swift electronic data transfer between mobile vessels and shore (base stations) through advance and real-time exchange of information so as to ensure navigation safety in inland waterways.
• It also provides virtual navigational aids to guide the vessel during navigation.
• Under Jal Marg Vikas Pariyojana, a fish pass has been envisaged for the free movement of Hilsa at Farakka Navigation Lock.

What is Fish way?

• Fish pass/Fish way is a structure on or around artificial and natural barriers (such as dams, locks and waterfalls) to facilitate natural fish migration.
• Most fishways enable fish to pass around the barriers by swimming into the waters on the other side.

About Hilsa Fish

• Hilsa has a history of migrating to Allahabad in the Ganga river system from Bangladesh.
• It is Bangladesh’s national fish and was called Matsyaraja – the king of fishes.
• Though it’s a saltwater fish, it migrates to sweet waters of the Ganges from the Bay of Bengal.
• It travels upstream of the river during the mating seasons and returns to its natural abode after spawning.