Kerala fishermen call for meeting of Fisheries Management Council

Fishermen have called for an immediate meeting of the Fisheries Management Council in view of the continuing dispute over juvenile fishing and a fish “drought” like situation off the Kerala coast. In separate memoranda to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and Fisheries Minister Saji Cherian, Matsya Thozhilali Aikya Vedi, a union of independent traditional fishermen, called for a financial package to overcome the current crisis in the fisheries sector.

The president of the fishermen’s union Charles George said that years of fall in oil sardine catch off Kerala coast had resulted in loss of about ₹10,000 crore. He added that according to estimates, oil sardine landings across India was worth ₹2,500 crore annually.

The volume of catch touched 3.99 lakh tonnes in 2012, but from 2013 to 2021, there was a steep decline, leading to significant losses, he said, citing data from the Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute. Sardine landings were just 2,392 tonnes in 2021. Since then, the fishing community had been calling for a fish drought package, he added.

Though there are signs of a comeback of oil sardines over the past two years, the results remain unsatisfactory. In 2022, the catch was 1.01 lakh tonnes, rising slightly to 1.39 lakh tonnes in 2023. Last year, India landed 2.28 lakh tonnes, with around 60% of the total caught by Kerala fishermen.

The fishermen said that fish drought-like conditions arose early in 2023, worsened by global warming and the El Niño effect, which warmed ocean waters. The shortage of oil sardine landings pushed the price of the fish to ₹300-₹350 per kg in the retail market, driving at least one lakh sardine fishermen into poverty, they added.

The fishermen’s union, however, pointed out that most of the sardines caught last year were juvenile fish, which did not adhere to the minimum legal size prescribed by the State government. Most of the juvenile catch was directed to fishmeal production factories.

Under these circumstances, the government should convene a meeting of the Fisheries Management Council to discuss the issues affecting the sector, which now faces threats to sustainability from juvenile fishing and destructive fishing practices, Mr. George said.

Published - September 23, 2024 12:49 am IST