Fish famine looms in coast

The fishing season has come to an end two months early.
If the fish stocks received in coastal markets are any indication, fish famine has begun.  The prices of low-value varieties of fishes have gone up by 40% in Malabar and Konkan coasts. The availability of common fish varieties such as Mackerels and sardines has fallen.

“Sardines are low-value fish. They were found in abundance in Malabar and Konkan coasts. This time, the volume has come down by 12% to 14% affecting the common man,” said Krishnananda Bangera, a leader of fishermen.

 Mackerels’ landing has also taken a beating. Reports from all the 12 landing areas along Karnataka’s coast and six in Kerala show dismal figures, he said.

 Fishermen are catching juvenile fishes to keep the market going. Pomfrets, Seer, Cuttle and squids get their full value in market only when they are fully grown. But as fishermen use nets with wrong specifications, even juveniles fishes are netted, leading to loss of progeny in the middle of the season, said Suresh Kumar, deputy director fisheries department. 

“We had told fishermen not to catch juveniles and use the specified nets for a particular type of fishing. But many of them indebted to banks catch everything to recover the cost of fishing expedition,” said Kashinath Karkera, a leader of Mangalore Trawl Boat Association.