JOWAI: Thousands of dead fishes floated all along the water surface of Lukha river from Sakhri to Borsora villages, a distance of 25 kilometres, in Jaintia Hills on Friday last as the water body turned blue once again.
“It (the change of colour) started on Friday from Bri-shynot and Sakhri village and reached Sonapur on Saturday. People started collecting the fishes since then and it lasted till Tuesday,” the Rangbah Shnong of Sonapur informed.
The change of colour and death of fishes in the Lukha has become an annual phenomenon now noticeable during the months of November to February. The change in colour was first visible in January 2007.
This year, the river has turned blue again since Saturday night. Villagers of Sunapyrdi (Sonapur) witnessed the discoloring of Lukha River on Saturday Morning.”We saw the river turning blue in colour and thousands dead fishes were floating on the water surface”, said a resident of Sunapyrdi.
“The river changed its colour from the confluence of Lunar (river) and Lukha,” Sunapyrdi headman, S Lamare said. Members of the KSU and JSU operating in Narpuh Elaka also visited the river in the wake of the latest development. People residing along the river bank in Sakhri, Umtalen, Sunapyrdi, Borsora, Chymphlong Lumshnong and its surrounding areas have been collecting dead fish since Saturday.