Dead fish lie in a tank at the Taraporewala Aquarium. Within two weeks of its reopening, at least a hundred marine fish have died at the Taraporevala Aquarium. The main reason is the usage of ‘filtered’ water directly sourced from the Arabian sea, resulting in high salinity and pollution in the fish tanks. A visit to the aquarium on Tuesday revealed that two blue star fish have replaced all the jelly fish in a special sleek tank that had showcased the latter. While high turbidity was observed in the Cat fish and Arowana fish tanks, the tanks, which until a week ago, had Grouper fish of different kinds was empty. “Sea horses are back on display, but unfortunately the jelly fish and some other fish have died,” admitted Vijay Shikare, curator of the aquarium, who says the problem is only with the marine fish section. He blames the ‘pollution in the Arabian Sea’ for the problem of fish deaths. While officials claimed there were no deaths on Tuesday, the previous two days saw 25 and 19 fish die.

“The total number of dead fishes could be a hundred,” said one of the officials, who did not wish to be named.best size tank for marine fish Officials working on the fish tank displays said that at least 600 fish had been removed so far and the losses incurred so far could run into several lakhs.best price bio fish tank Water for the tanks is sourced from the Arabian sea after filtering at the filtration plant. best way to clean cloudy fish tank glassBut sources said that there is a problem with the filtration plant and besides being faulty, it simply filters the water, but the sea water around Mumbai is extremely polluted.big fish tank online india

“These are exotic fish bought from Bangkok and Malaysia and are kept in quarantine at 1.8 TDS (total dissolved salts) salinity. buy fish for aquarium in bangaloreBut the salinity in the tanks is as high as 24 TDS. 55 gal fish tank pumpThese fish were matured at much lower salinity at the quarantine facility at the aquarium are bound to be killed,” said one of the officials. The casualty so far includes angel fish, jelly fish, sea horses among other species of fish. The fisheries department had spent Rs 22 crore on the aquarium, where a signboard announces that the tunnel aquarium is one of its kind in India. Some of the fish that have died were from this tank. The aquarium was shut in March 2013 and reopened after two years following the revamp. The aquarium sees an average of 6,000 visitors a day on weekends and 4,000 on week days.

Fisheries commissioner M B Gaikwad said that ticket sales have been reduced to manage the crowd. Visitors can now book tickets only between 10 am to 1 pm, and 2-5 pm. A number of instructions have now propped up on the gate. “In case of overcrowding, ticket booking window timing may be reduced at short notice or in case of less crowd turnout, timing may be extended. Visitors will be allowed inside the aquarium only up to 5pm. There are only 16 marine and nine sweet water fish displayed and a tropical section only on the ground floor at this aquarium,” they read. These instructions are put in place to ward off visitors who keep asking for more tanks and displays on upper floors, based on fake photos making rounds on Whatsapp groups, said officials. For all the latest India News, download Indian Express App now This product is currently out of stock. 1 Jellyfish Kit Includes: Desktop Jellyfish Tank Medium... View full product details3 Jellyfish Kit Includes: Desktop Jellyfish Tank 2×...

Deluxe Kit Includes: Desktop Jellyfish Tank 3× Large... Jelly Cylinder Nano 3 Jelly Kit Now back in stock! Includes: 3 Live Moon Jellyfish via 2-day express shipping 3-month supply of Jelly Food Jellyfish Cylinder Nano Aquarium JellyBio Starter LED... View full product details  » News » Mumbai gets its aquarium back, but don't expect a world-class oneFish-lover Rajesh Karkera revisits Taraporevala Aquarium V2.0 after decades and comes back with mixed feelings. It has a touch pool, an oceanarium, but is this all what that the city was promised? Mumbai’s Taraporevala Aquarium will always remain special to me. It was my first exposure to the world of underwater life, which subsequently developed into a passion, so much so that my home has always had a reasonably-sized fish tank. I can still recall my first visit to the aquarium decades ago -- the turtle that glided through the water in Zen-like equanimity. I was barely three when I went to the aquarium for the first time, my aunt and uncle taking me by the hand.

Soon, it would become a must-see during the holidays. The 64-year-old aquarium was my gateway to a whole new world; it was simply mesmerising. All I could see were the fish; their beauty made the glass walls of the tanks disappear. Even the aquarium’s concrete walls did not seem to matter just like the background to the tanks. All that mattered were the little creatures -- floating, diving, swimming -- that gripped my attention. Along with them even I floated into another world, its inhabitants colourful, graceful. Did the fish know I was staring at them in wonderment? Were they oblivious to the other species that trooped in every day, morning to evening? I was clueless then and I am clueless now. But I know the impact, the pull, they exerted on me. In particular that magnificent turtle. But Bombay being Mumbai, all good things must come to an end. The aquarium soon fell on bad days, as Indians became more globally peripatetic, somehow the Taraporevala Aquarium didn’t hold the same charm as its state-of-the-art counterparts overseas.

Slowly the footfalls declined, the aquarium started looking down in the mouth, and ground its way to closure in 2013, with a grand promise of being back bigger and better.What of the creatures inside, I have no idea, but it’s a fair bet that they perished. I would often think back to those days of innocence, missing them enormously. Making up for the lump in my throat was my own decent-sized fish tank at home, housing a variety of my favourite fish. The Hawkbill Turtle, also known as the Common Sea Turle, getting acclimatised at the aquarium. Now, after 37 years, when it was announced that the aquarium was being given a fresh lease of life, I was overjoyed. There are certain things a city such as Mumbai, staking a claim to international status, needs to have, and a well-maintained aquarium is one of them. I couldn’t wait to see the new-look aquarium for myself! And memories of that turtle kept rushing back. My return to the aquarium, on Mumbai’s iconic Marine Drive, was mistimed.

I had gone by newspaper reports about its opening but when I reached the venue I was met with an announcement that it had been delayed. Disappointed along with me were scores of children, accompanied by their families, and other enthusiasts. But I had press card, which I furnished with child-like enthusiasm. After taking the necessary permissions with a promise to write about the aquarium, I was allowed inside, again into a world that once upon a time so consumed me. Rupesh Utekar of Utekar Fisheries inspects his design of the plexi tank at the entrance. Will the new aquarium be home to that turtle, I wondered as I revisited my favourite childhood hangout. And there he was! He had just been brought in and was getting acclimatised to the new surroundings. I just stood there and watched in awe like I did when I was three. The oceanarium at the foyer is made up of 4.5 inch think Plexiglass and holds a total water capacity of 22,000 litres. The tank's dry weight is 5.5 tonnes.

As you enter the aquarium, you will be greeted by its biggest promise, the oceanarium (photograph above), so please take your time, pause, and just look around. It’s a short walk, just three steps, so if you rush you will probably miss the whole experience. This is made of four-inch thick glass. You can see the fish swimming overhead, which regardless of the size, is an impressive feeling. It’s a fantastic attempt, keeping in mind Mumbai’s limited space availability, to provide for a world-class experience. I, too, was expecting an underwater walk, not just a couple of steps, but I understand the constraints. That doesn’t mean I was bowled over; it is only a marginal improvement to what existed early, and by no means will it blow your mind -- unless, like me, you feel a kinship with the water world. The basic structure of the aquarium is the same as it was years ago; in that sense nothing much has changed. Inside, straight ahead, is where the main marine and freshwater fish are preparing for their stay in their new habitat.

A couple of men are still working on giving the final touches. On the right is the home aquarium section, fully ready for the world to see. A worker walks past the stretch of fish tanks in the aquarium while giving final touches to the place. The main section first. To the right, on the walls, are marine tanks, with fish from the sea, and on the left are the freshwater tanks full of creatures from rivers and lakes. Seen above is a colony of saltwater fish, mainly the Yellow Tang, also known by their scientific name of Zebrasoma flavescens. These fish are about as brightly coloured as they can get. The fox fish seen above is very peaceful except when around similar fish. Predators normally leave it alone because of its venomous dorsal spines. The Moray Eel, above, with its blue, dark, eerie-looking tank makes for an interesting view. The Moray Eel is a nocturnal fish, which likes to live in holes in the ocean bed and reefs and is always ready to catch and eat up any small fish that comes wandering by.

I think this is the first time I have ever seen jellyfish in India (photograph above), and is a unique addition to the aquarium. These are on commercial display in India for the first time, inform officials. They're quite small, and I would have loved to see them in a much bigger tank! Sadly, it’s all new wine in the same old space-constrained bottle. For your information, jellyfish do not have a head, heart, brain or bones! Moving on to the freshwater section, what grabs your attention completely is the alligator-type fish that is moving about majestically. It seems to have a frighteningly huge and prehistoric appearance (photograph above), with a snout that gives it its name. But this is one fish that has been misunderstood by many. Called the Alligator Gaar, these harmless fish have been on earth for more than 150 million years, easily predating us humans, and are still hunted for their fierce looks. Its only defence, its appearance, spells its death! These adorable, comical-looking fish above are called Puffer fish.

They are curious by nature and will come close as you peep through the glass. But any sudden movement and they will bloat up like a balloon, up to three times its size! This is their defence mechanism. They have the ability to gulp in air or water and puff up like a ball to frighten away enemies. Then there is this brown and white clown-like fish, above, the Sweet Lips Grouper found mostly in the Indian Ocean. This is a juvenile and mostly mimics the movements of the poisonous flatworm for defence against predators. They gain more spots which reverse from white to black as they age. Also seen above is the Neon Okara Chichlid just above  the Grouper. Another small section is the home aquarium setup above which has angel fish, gold fish, etc. These are the brightly colourful Parrot fish (photograph above), which are artificially grown. They cannot breed by themselves i.e. they do lay eggs which never hatch. These are very shy and can be tamed to respond to you in a few weeks.

The next display is a planted tank in the home aquarium section. This setup requires a lot of hard work, like specific lights, artificial CO2, etc so that the plants can undergo photosynthesis and produce their own food and release oxygen. The fish in these tanks are called tetras. Seen here are 'Neon Tetras' which reflect light and look like they run on electricity. Next up were some scared-looking aquarium sharks, above. These are only called sharks, and actually have no relationship to the sharks of the ocean. The unique touch pool being set up above will be an observation cum touch pool (and that, only under supervision) for enthusiastic visitors. The touch pool will have starfish, tube worms, sea cowries, sea urchins and anemones. The new-look aquarium will also have an amphitheatre, above, a small comfy-looking hall in which documentaries on underwater world etc will be screened. The aquarium once had a room which housed fossils, corals, seashells, bottled and preserved exhibits but it has now been reduced to just displays on the walls.