New ‘world class’ Taraporewala aquarium to replace 72-yr-old iconic structure

Dr Atul Patne, Commissioner of Maharashtra department of fisheries, told The Indian Express that the old building has weakened extensively, owing to the ongoing coastal road project. “PWD report revealed that the aquarium was dilapidated. Hence, we will dismantle the structure and establish a new state-of-the-art aquarium in its place,” he said.

“Besides chances of corrosion of the old-age structure, owing to the proximity of the sea, the coastal road project have also impacted the structure severely. The structure is repairable, but has to be repaired frequently, owing to the coastal road project work. It is a public space frequented by a huge number of visitors. So, we have decided to dismantle the structure,” Patne added.

While the aquarium has been closed for the public since the Covid-19 outbreak in 2020, the state department of fisheries — which operated out of Taraporewala — was relocated to Nariman Point between July and August this year, following the emergence of the PWD report. Fish from the aquarium, meanwhile, were distributed across three public aquariums in Pune, Chandrapur, and Ahmedabad.

According to data procured by The Indian Express, 95 fish were transported via tempos to Pune, 173 (Ahmedabad), and 257 (Chandrapur) in intermediate bulk container (IBC) tanks. “The fish species were transported in IBC tanks, which were filled with water up to 60 per cent, to ensure that they could swim around. Ahead of the transfer, the fish were starved for at least two days to prevent faecal contamination, and also raise the ammonia levels in water. The fish were acclimatised in the water before transportation, and we have even put battery-operated aerators there for the supply of extra oxygen,” said a senior official, on the condition of anonymity.

The aquarium was established in 1951 for a budget of Rs 8,00,000 and was named after Parsi philanthropist D B Taraporewala.

Marine ecologists have told The Indian Express that the Taraporewala aquarium, in its heyday, was the workstation for some of the most renowned scientists from the sector in India. Though the old structure underwent a makeover between 2013 and 2015, marine experts stated that the aquarium had been in shambles even before the coastal road project.

Shaunak Modi, director of Coastal Conservation Foundation, said, “Taraporewala is an important institution for Mumbai. Besides the fish, the aquarium was home to shells, which curators like Dr B F Chhapgar had collected during their tenure. Though it is unfortunate that the heritage structure will be demolished, the fact is the aquarium had been in a sorry state even before the coastal road project work began. For instance, during my last visit to the aquarium in 2019, I found that several types of fish were randomly put in the same tank. Developing a new aquarium is an important move, but it is essential that the aquarium is run by people who understand the subject.”

In a bid to set the ball rolling for the new aquarium, a tender for appointing a contractor for designing the aquarium is slated to be floated “very soon”, said Patne. “I was a frequent visitor to the aquarium in my childhood, and there was never an educational angle to those trips. But from where else would the children learn about marine life, a subject on which there has been a dearth of information. The government (state) must ensure that the aquarium is developed, not only as a spectacle, but also with the perspective of educating the people,” Modi added.

Meanwhile, Pradip Patade from Marine Life of Mumbai said, “While developing the new aquarium, the fisheries department must check on the sustainability as to whether the imported fish could survive in Indian waters. A tab on the appropriate size of the fish tanks must also be kept. Besides, the department must either appoint trained professionals or train the existing staff to manage the fish, like Ranibaug has done for the penguin exhibit.”