The Amazing Story of Catfish in Bala Mandir

On December 5, 2023, when Bala Mandir was still flooded and the water was getting pumped out, there was a major surprise for the children and staff. Suddenly they saw something jumping up from the water with a splash. The alert social workers quickly guessed that these were fish which had probably come down with the flood waters. Everyone was excited to see the fish jump around.

Unfortunately, there was nowhere to escape for the fish and they got trapped as the water level came down due to the continuous pumping of the storm water. The team caught around half a dozen of large fish. One of them weighed close to 10 kgs and few others were between 2 to 5 kgs!

The common guess that these were all catfish, but we were not wholly sure. The other question was how these fish ended up in Bala Mandir and where they could have come from. A quick Google search revealed the following information —

1. Identity of Catfish – The name of the fish comes from their prominent barbels, which resemble whiskers, located around their mouth. These barbels help catfish locate food in murky water and are usually one of the most distinctive features of the fish. Most catfish species have smooth and scale less skin. Catfish typically have stout bodies that taper toward the tail. Catfish have downward-facing mouths, which are adapted for bottom-feeding. Their mouths are often wide and fleshy, allowing them to engulf prey items whole. All this information confirmed that the fish caught in Bala Mandir were indeed catfish.

2. Rate of growth – The growth rate of catfish can vary depending on factors such as species, feeding regimen, water temperature, and overall environmental conditions. However, under optimal conditions, catfish typically grow at a rate of about 0.5 to 1 kilogram per year. Therefore, the 10 kg fish would be around 10 to 20 years old and the 2 to 5 kgs would be 5 to 10 years old. This information was indeed mind boggling. This means that the fishes were older than the average child in Bala Mandir!

3. Habitat – Catfish thrive in clean water with good oxygen levels. They prefer water temperatures typically ranging from 24°C to 29°C. They are omnivorous and can eat a wide range of foods including pellets, worms, insects, and small fish. Catfish need adequate space to grow and move freely. Catfish prefer deeper water with sufficient depth for swimming and hiding.

Having read all this information, the next problem was to figure out the mystery as to how these fish reached Bala Mandir. We looked at the various possibilities. The fishes could not have lived for so many years in either Mambalam canal or the Adyar river. We concluded that in all probability the fish were from Chembarambakkam lake where the conditions would have been ideal for their growth. They probably jumped into the Adyar river when the gates were opened. Then they probably came down the Adyar river and when crossing the Mambalam Canal, they must have swum against the tide and up the Mambalam Canal to T. Nagar. When the rains stopped and the water level started coming down, they were swept into  the low-lying Bala Mandir campus by the rushing water and got trapped here. This meant that they had made a journey of almost 50 kms to reach Bala Mandir! They were finally jumping around and having fun in Bala Mandir as the water was stagnant for some time but unfortunately, they could not escape from here as the level of water soon dropped.

Isn’t this a truly amazing story? Unfortunately for the fish it was not a pleasant ending.