The State government will reward fishermen who will release the protected marine species they have caught back into the sea.
The agriculture, dairy development, animal husbandry and fisheries department has decided to give ₹25,000 to fishermen in addition to reimbursement for damages to gill nets in the process of releasing the catch. The directive will ensure not only better awareness but some curbs on the thriving illegal international trade of protected species, officials said.
Dolphins, sharks, saw fish, guitar fish, and protected turtles are not released by fishermen since it is not financially viable for them to cut the gill nets for select catch. “Even if they (fishermen) commit a violation of law it is never reported because the awareness is poor,” an official said.
The department has laid down some guidelines for getting the incentive. The fishermen will have to produce pictorial evidence of the cut gill nets and the subsequent release of protected fish into the sea. Both boat and the fisherman must have valid licences to claim the reward. “We have also asked them to furnish the GPS positioning numbers of the location where they will net the catch,” an official said.
Leaders of the fishing community, however, said the incentive is just a face-saving exercise for a government that has taken little or no action against smuggling of marine species. It is estimated that ₹2,000 crore of illegal marine trade thrives along the 720-km-long coastline.
“This government has done little to stop the use of illegal net and LED lights in smuggling. Merely giving a paltry incentive will not help,” Damodar Tandel, president, Akhil Maharashtra Machimar Kruti Samiti, said.
