MAYILADUTHURAI: Declaring that there are no more registered purse seine fishers in the district after the lone three who were permitted to resort to the fishing method are said to be switching back to trawling, the fisheries department has begun to seize the nets used for the activity from harbours. The Supreme Court early last year passed an order allowing the use of purse seine fishing nets ('surukku madi valai') albeit with conditions like setting specific hours for fishing with it and confining its usage to an area within the exclusive economic zone but outside the territorial sea waters (from 12 nautical miles to 200 nautical miles).
A purse seine net is designed to construct an enclosing formation like a large purse around a school of fish to trap them. Following the ruling, three boat owners had registered for the fishing method from Pazhaiyar, promising to abide by the conditions. The fisheries department then fixed transponders in their vessels to monitor their fishing hours.
However, it is now learnt that all three have requested for a switch back to trawling. "There are no legal users of purse seine fishing in Mayiladuthurai district currently after the three are switching back to trawling. Hence, prse seine fishers are not allowed to keep the nets without permission as they could be smuggled into sea for fishing," said T Elamvazhudi, the joint director of fisheries and fishermen welfare department.
With the district recording a history of violence breaking out between two groups over “illegal” purse seine fishing shortly after the apex court verdict, a team led by Elamvazhudi accompanied by personnel from the police and the marine enforcement wing held searches at the harbour in Poompuhar on Wednesday. In it, they seized two sets of purse seine nets which are valued at Rs 15 lakh. Although local fisherfolk resisted the move the police warned them of arrest.