107FISH BIODIVERSITY AND CONSERVATION ASPECTS IN AN AQUATIC ECO-SYSTEM IN RIVER NARMADABiodiversity and its conservation are regarded as one of the major issues of enabling sustainable use of natural resources. Fish fauna form an integral part of aquatic eco-system, and any changes taking place in the medium in which they live can affect their productivity, diversity and distribution. In order to assess the present scenario of the fish fauna of river Narmada, study was undertaken from Nov.2010-Oct.2012. Seasonal samplings were done at the three study sites viz: Upstream sethanighat, midsethanighat and Downstream sethanighat. The fishes were collected with the help of local fishermen and tribal people using cast nets and gill nets of different mesh size. The present study showed 40 fish species, 25 genera, 15 families and 6 orders were recorded in the three stations of Narmada near Hoshangabad region. Among them the Cyprinidea contribute 63.64% of their total population. Due to some anthropogenic activities fish diversity of this river is in decline mode. To conserve this inherent treasure, a long term management plan should be adopted. The aim of this study is to conserve the fish fauna of river Narmada.najahbhat@gmail.comResearch542015Fish diversity,fauna,River Narmada,Aquatic eco-system,Population declineZahida Bano,Rajandra Chauhan,Najeeb Ahmad BhatDepartment of Zoology, Govt. M.L.B. Girls P.G College, Bhopal (MP) India.,Department of Zoology, Govt. M.L.B. Girls P.G College, Bhopal (MP) India.,Department of Environmental Sciences and Limnology, Barkatullah University, Bhopal (M.P) India-462026.