THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: In a bid to make up for the workdays lost due to the lockdown, the trawl boat operators have urged the government to consider the period as part of the annual 61-day ban mandated by the Central government. While the trawling ban along the eastern coast will begin from April 15, the ban will be enforced from June 1 in west coast states including Kerala. The demand was made after several eastern states including Tamil Nadu made a proposal in favour of the trawlers.
“We have lost a lot of days due to the lockdown. The exports have been badly affected. Considering the unprecedented situation, we request the government to minimise further loss to the sector,” said Peter Mathias, state president of All Kerala Fishing Boat Operators’ Association (AKFBOA). According to him, any further delay in restarting business activities would affect the economy, which will be looking for a comeback after the pandemic.
He said besides being a major foreign exchange earner, the fishing sector also provides employment to thousands of people in the state. However, the demand has once again opened the long-standing rift between the state’s trawlers and traditional fishers. While the trawling ban is uniformly applicable to all fishing vessels in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ), states such as Kerala gives exemption to their traditional fishermen. It may be noted that there are around 4,000 mechanised large boats against 40,000 small boats operated by traditional fishermen.
“The lockdown has impacted the fishing sector uniformly and everyone along the value chain is in distress. However, tampering with the ban order will only work in favour of the mechanised sector, which has overwhelmingly better access in the EEZ,” said T Peter, general secretary of National Fishworkers Forum (NFF). According to him, the order draws from scientific models that prove that the monsoon season creates a conducive environment for fish spawning. It is crucial to protect the marine habitat during the reproduction period, he said. The NFF has submitted a memorandum to Pratap Chandra Sarangi, Union Minister of State for Fisheries, to adhere to the previously proposed dates of trawling ban.
‘Delay in restarting business to hit economy’
According to Peter Mathias, state president of All Kerala Fishing Boat Operators’ Association, any further delay in restarting business activities would affect the economy, which will be looking for a comeback after the pandemic.