As ban period comes to a close, mechanised fishing boats inspected

Fishermen had done maintenance works during this period

A team of officials from the Fisheries Department inspected the mechanised fishing boats that were moored along the wharf at Thoothukudi fishing harbour here on Monday.

During the 61-day annual fishing ban period, the mechanised boats had undergone maintenance works. Ahead of the resumption of fishing on June 15, physical inspection of the boats were carried out, sources told The Hindu . Normally, the 45-day fishing ban would commence from April 15 and conclude on May 29 but this year it was ban period was extended by fifteen more days.

The team checked whether the boats were equipped with facilities as per the Tamil Nadu Marine Fishing Regulation Act, 1983. All mechanised boats from Ponneri to Kanyakumari along the east coast have been inspected.

During the schedule in Thoothukudi, the team checked the length of boats, horse power capacity of engines equipped in boats and also verified the registration numbers of the boats. The team also checked whether the boats maintained permitted colour code.

As per government norms, every registered boat should have a length of twenty meters and 150 horse power capacity had to be maintained in motor engine.

Thoothukudi fishing harbour has a fleet of 250 mechanised boats, including some unregistered boats. Permit tokens and subsidised diesel were being extended to every registered boat operators. If the operators did not comply with the norms as per the Act, such benefits would not be extended, sources said.