Harshini Brahmavar
Daijiworld Media Network - Udupi (SS)

Udupi, May 31: This year, fishing boats from the sea have been moored to the harbour quite early. As June 1 to July 21 will be the breeding time of fish, two months’ vacation to fishermen is proposed. But the joy of profit in business is not really seen. The fishermen have seen a fish famine like never before. They are anxious about not getting the returns for the capital they’ve invested, and concerned that they have failed due to several reasons.

According to Gopal RK, 90% of business has diminished this year. "Fishing is like a God’s gift, and we can’t predict what can happen. Moreover the price of fish is also falling. Purse seine fishing has seen some recovery. Still, the fishermen have been disappointed. Once they purchase a boat, they have to spend more and more each year for its maintenance," says Gopal RK.

The steel boats used in deep-sea fishing require expenditure of around Rs 1 crore to make them, while purse seine boats require around Rs 1.20 crore to be spent in the making. Hence if the fishing does not go as expected, the fishermen get caught up in a rut due to the maintenance costs increasing by the year.

Also, the workers who toil day and night should be paid salaries, costs for their expenses in the next two months need to be arranged for. All this relies on the income obtained through the year’s fishing.

Udupi district has around 100-200 deep-sea boats, 950 purse seine boats, 1,200 small boats involved in fishing.

Space issues for anchoring the boats in the harbor

The number of boats increases every year, so space problems arise. The boats compete to get anchored in the harbor every year. 80-85% of the space in the harbor is already occupied. Now it’s hard to find space for the boats that are outside. Thus, this year too they must depend on places like Bengre and Gangolli.

When compared to last year, there has been a 30% decline in deep-sea fishing this year. fish from the Karavali region of Mangaluru and Malpe mostly go to the markets of Kerala. The market there has dwindled; hence a reduction in profit is seen.

If we observe the report of Udupi district till March, 1, 44,525 metric tons of fish worth around Rs 1, 45,664 have been caught in the year 2016. But in the previous year, 1, 51,099 metric tons of fish were available. In just one year; there has been a fall of 6,574 metric tons.

If the last 5 years are considered, good fishing is observed in the year 2013-2014. 1, 40,607 metric tons of fish were available. In 2014-15 it was 1, 43,310 metric tons; in 2015-16 it was 1, 51,099 metric tons.

Then, if we look at the monthly statistics, the year 2016-17 has only seen a decline since Decermber. 18,643 metric tons in December, 15,679 metric tons in January, 14,315 metrics tons in February, and just 10,607 metric tons in March were available- says information from the Mangaluru fishing report.

If we observe the South Canara district, there has been a balance in the quantity and value for the past 3 years.

Good fishing was seen in South Canara district in the year 2014-15. That year, 1, 50,525 metric tons of fish were available. 1,51,458 metric tons in 2015-16, 1,52,573 metric tons of fish in 2016-17 were caught here.

Fish like Bangude (Mackerel), Madmal (Big eye/pink perch), Disco fish are available in immense quantity. Though there are rules made for the nets used by fishermen in deep-sea fishing, they have not been implemented properly. Hence, the little fish get caught up in these nets. This is an unscientific way, causing the destruction of a lot of fish off-spring. The obtained fish are considered waste and sent to the fish mills. This is an uncontrolled business. Though the fishing deparment in Karavali has information about this, they say that the fishermen should be convinced about this and they can’t do anything about it.

Meanwhile, despite the proposal to ban this fishing from June 15, no decision has been made. Thus, due to the deficiency of fish or due to the deprivation of space to anchor the boats in the harbor, the boats have arrived at the shore a little earlier.