Hit hard by an unprecedented dip in catch, majority of the fishing boats in Kerala are lying idle for the last few days generating anxiety in the sector. While 80% of the trawlers have stopped venturing into the sea, traditional fishers say there has been an alarming decline in the availability of pelagic fish species such as mackerel and sardine.
Though the annual lean season is not over, the fishers say they are facing a fish famine for the first time in several decades. They also feel that this drastic depletion may hint at a change in marine environment and its capacity to replenish fishery stocks.
“Along with the low availability of fish, the hike in fuel price has left us in a difficult spot. The diesel price was around ₹62 last year, but now it has touched ₹86 which makes a huge difference in total expenditure. If we can’t return with a reasonably good catch, the result will be mounting debts and we have decided to stay off waters due to this,” says Peter Mathias, president, All Kerala Fishing Boat Operators Association.
Fishers say the situation has proved all the normal forecasts wrong and point out many reasons for the famine, including pollution and overfishing. “Only small units are venturing into the sea at present and they are able to survive as the prices have skyrocketed due to the shortage. We agree that this is a lean season, but we have never experienced such scarcity before,” says Jackson Pollayil, president, Kerala Swatantra Matsyathozhilali Federation.
Since climate change and rising sea temperatures can affect the migratory pattern and stock size of pelagic fish, they also fear that some species might have moved away from the shallow coastal waters.
“In the month of April and May we usually harvest mackerel and sardine in huge volumes, but right now both have become rare. Traditional fishers mainly depend on the pelagic stock and now it remains nearly empty.”
Mr.Pollayil adds that unscientific fishing methods, including pair trawling, too have contributed to the situation. “They use Chinese engines and multiple gears to sieve all three levels of the sea. They net a lot of juveniles and that part of the catch goes straight to the fish meal fish oil (FMFO) industry. In a sense the ban and regulation on fishing during the early pandemic days helped us as the landings were really good in post-lockdown days,” he says.
Mr.Mathias says overexploitation can be one main reason as an enormous number of crafts are currently fishing in our sea. “We have boats and crafts three times beyond the capacity of our sea and the government keeps giving permission. At present 80% of boats in the mechanised sector are staying off waters, which is something totally unheard of under normal circumstances. If this continues it will be difficult for the sector to stay afloat,” he adds.
