More than 900,000 fish were released simultaneously into 21 lakes in several districts of Istanbul on Thursday as part of the city's "Fishing and Water Resources Project," an effort marked with a ceremony in the metropolis's green district Beykoz.

Speaking during the ceremony, Istanbul Provincial Director of Agriculture and Forestry Ahmet Yavuz Karaca said fishing has been supported by their efforts over the past five years.

"Today, we mark the introduction of a total of 2.24 million carp into our inland waters with the addition of the 937,000 we just introduced into the local bodies of water," Karaca said.

"We released the carp simultaneously in 21 ponds in five districts. Our aim is to increase the fish population in our inland waters for our citizens and amateur fishing enthusiasts living in the rural areas in this region. We want fishermen to use it as a quality, cheap protein source. That's our ultimate goal," he added.

Explaining that the program hopes to expand the variety of fish as well as their numbers in the wild in the near future, he said: "In this framework, we have already been carrying out fishery activities for four or five years. This is a very important program and very valuable for Istanbul."

During the ceremony, Karaca also stressed routine checks are conducted to ensure positive results.

Fishery resources are managed by the General Directorate of Fisheries, which is overseen by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, to ensure quality, cheap and healthy sources of protein for citizens living in rural areas, to support commercial and sport fishing, to maintain the sustainability of fishery resources and to preserve the resources for future generations.

To maintain the fish population, local fishermen are allowed to try their chances, but commercial fishing in the inland water sources is currently strictly prohibited.

According to the agriculture and forestry director, the carp have thrived in Istanbul's waters, with mukhtars, or local officials, reporting fish weighing up to 30 kilograms (66 pounds) being caught by locals over the past few years.