Fish fauna of river Ujh, an important tributary of the river Ravi, District Kathua, Jammu

Fish survey of river Ujh, an important clean water tributary of the river Ravi, in Kathua  district,  has revealed  the presence of 42 fish species belonging to 5 orders, 10 families and 27 genera. Fish fauna is dominated by Cypriniformes (27 species), followed by Siluriformes (10 species), Synbranchiformes (2 species), Perciformes (2 species) and Beloniformes (1 species). Fishing methods commonly employed include cast net, rod and hook, pocket net, poisoning, hand picking, stick, sickle and simple cloth. Fish diversity is fast depleting due to over exploitation, illegal fishing methods and fishing during breeding season.  There  are  great  prospects  of  increasing  fish  production  in  this  river  by  stocking  various  carps  in seasonal Ujh barrage at village Jasrota.