Studies on Intertidal Macrozoobenthos of Hugli River in and Around Calcutta in Relation to Water and Soil Conditions
Contents: Preface. 1. Introduction. 2. Materials and methods. 3. Results and discussion. Conclusion. Summary. References. Appendices.
From the preface: "The study of river ecology has gained immense importance because of the multiple use of river waters. Almost all major rivers of India have become highly polluted. Even the Ganga, with high self-purification capacity, is among India’s most polluted rivers. River Hugli which originates from Ganga experiences considerable human activities of various kinds along its course including domestic, commercial, agricultural and industrial activities. As a result, different types of waste materials enter the river continuously altering its water quality and are bound to affect the living resources, i.e., animals and plants occurring in the river water. The water quality of this river in particular and the habitat in general have become somewhat inhospitable to shelter the organic diversity. The rich variety of flora and fauna, which has so long sustained, have now become threatened. In view of the above facts, a comprehensive plan had been in mid 1980’s undertaken by the Central Ganga Authority to restore the purity of the river water which will obviously help in the preservation of its natural living resources. A nationwide effort to restore and maintain the water quality got underway with the passing of Water Prevention and Control of Pollution Act in 1974.
In an effort to understand and evaluate the hydrobiological status of Hugli estuary in and around Calcutta metropolis, a comprehensive biomonitoring study of physico-chemical characteristics of water and sediment and benthic fauna was undertaken (1995-1997) in the present research programme. Herein, the physico-chemical status of the riverine ecosystem is described covering a wide spectrum of parameters like dissolved oxygen, biological oxygen demand, chemical oxygen demand, etc., while the study of the benthic fauna is emphasized in relation to their importance as an effective tool for supplementing the physico-chemical information on the river system. Various biological indices were calculated to reflect the overall condition of the aquatic system of Hugli river. On the other hand, statistical analyses were done to elaborate the inter-relationship between the selected abiotic factors and benthic components of the river. It is assumed that, the baseline information gained from this research work would clearly and convincingly demonstrate the state of ‘health’ of the stretch of Hugli riverine ecosystem concerned. Herein, a detailed description of the physico-chemical and biological parameters is given highlighting the recognition, description and understanding the effect of pollution especially from Tolly’s nullah using indicator organisms."
