Even after the 45-day annual ban was lifted and fishing by mechanised boats resumed from May 30, prices of fish have not come down.
Even prices at stalls run by Tamil Nadu Fisheries Development Corporation (TNFDC), which used to sell fish at reasonable prices against high prices fixed by vendors at the fish market and the roadside, are high now.
TNFDC sources said that since they procured fish from merchants, the prices had to be kept high, though the profit margin was thin. They attributed the high prices to dwindling fish catch.
TNFDC sources said that a kilo of ‘seela’ (barracuda) was selling for Rs.900; ‘Oola’ for Rs. 400; ‘vila’ for Rs.380; ‘vaaval’ (pomfret) for Rs. 750 to Rs. 1,200; and prawns for Rs. 380. ‘Kelangan,’ which used to be sold for Rs.220, was being sold at Rs.300; ‘nethili’ (anchovy) was sold at Rs.250 (Rs.180); and squid at Rs. 200 (Rs.180).
Unfavourable
F. Robert Villavarayar, former president, Country Craft Fishermen Association, Threspuram, said that fishing season should be at its peak now, but weather conditions, the key factor for fishing, was adverse this year. Lack of winds had also led to a decline in fish catch. When the turbid sea got cleared by the winds and water current, it would be conducive for fishing.
Besides, delayed onset of monsoon in Kerala did not auger well for fishing. Out of the 900 country boats in Threspuram, only 600 had been venturing into sea, he said. S. Xavier Vas, president, Tuticorin Mechanised Boat Owners’ Association, said that by selling the meagre catch, they could meet only the expenses they incurred for buying diesel. With the enforcement of annual fishing ban along the west coast now, traders from Kerala were procuring fish from Tuticorin coast, leading to high price of fish in the local market, he said.
