Tejal Somvanshi
Strange fish have been appearing along the flooded edges of the Gandak River in Bihar, and the state government wants people to leave them alone.
Bihar’s Dairy, Fisheries and Animal Resources Department issued a public advisory on August 31, 2026, telling residents not to catch, buy, sell, or eat any fish they don’t recognize that arrived with floodwaters from Nepal. The department asked people to report unusual fish to their District Fisheries Officer or the local administration. Anyone who has already eaten such fish and develops symptoms — vomiting, diarrhoea, stomach pain, dizziness, or breathing difficulty — is advised to seek medical attention immediately.
The fish came from Nepal. Heavy monsoon rains triggered a major flood in the Bhote Koshi River in Nepal’s Rasuwa district on August 26, 2026. That flood pushed large volumes of water into the Narayani river system, which crosses into India and becomes the Gandak River. As that water moved through the Valmikinagar Barrage in Bihar, large fish were swept downstream into shallow canals, riverbanks, and flooded farmland across West Champaran and Gopalganj districts.
People gathered along the riverbanks near Valmikinagar, Bagaha, and the Gautam Buddha Setu to catch or collect these fish. Some of the fish reported weigh between 10 kg and 90 kg. The Sub-Divisional Magistrate of Bagaha, Chandni Kumari, coordinated the response along with fisheries teams, who were directed to monitor local markets and collect water samples from the river.
The government’s concern is not about the size or appearance of the fish. It is about what floodwater carries. When a flood moves through populated areas, it drags along sewage, dead animals, agricultural chemical runoff, and drainage waste into the river channels. Fish swimming through that water are exposed to high bacterial loads — including E. coli and Salmonella — and can absorb chemical contaminants directly into their tissues. Floods also deplete oxygen levels in the water rapidly, causing fish to die or become distressed before anyone catches them.
A dead or weakened fish pulled from contaminated floodwater and left on a September riverbank for hours is not safe food, whatever its size.
The advisory was still active as of September 4. Some reports have described the fish as possibly being goonch catfish, a large Himalayan river species. That identification has not been confirmed by any fisheries authority. The government warning applies to all unidentified fish from floodwaters, regardless of species.
