ABSTRACT
A study was conducted on the economically important fishes Labeo rohita (Hamilton 1822), Tor tor (Hamilton 1822) and Labeo calbasu (Hamilton 1822) stocks from the Ken, the Paisuni and the Tons rivers in the Vindhyan region. Asymptotic length was maximum in L. rohita (946, 833 and 962 mm) as compared with T. tor (822, 787 and 946 mm) and minimum in L. calbasu (567, 612 and 692 mm) in the Ken, the Paisuni and the Tons rivers, respectively. The growth coefficient and total mortality was maximum in T. tor compared to L. rohita and minimum in L. calbasu. Fishing mortality was maximum in T. tor (2.9, 4.57 and 3.44) and minimum in L. calbasu (0.51, 1.21 and 1.18) while natural mortality was maximum in L. rohita (0.74, 0.94 and 1.86) and minimum in L. calbasu (0.47, 0.65 and 0.68). Natural mortality indicated that the habitat was more suitable for L. calbasu. Comparatively, fishing pressure was very high in T. tor than L. rohita and L. calbasu. Exploitation rate was maximum in T. tor (0.71, 0.82 and 0.84) compared to L. rohita (0.77, 0.74 and 0.56) and minimum in L. calbasu (0.52, 0.65 and 0.63) in the Ken, Paisuni and Tons rivers, respectively.