The annual 45-day ban on fishing in Puducherry and Union Territories will come into effect on April 15. Joint director of fisheries G Ramalakshmi said the ban, imposed under the Deep Sea Fishing Regulation Act, will be in effect till May 31 while the ban on the West Coast will be from June 15 to July 31.
During the trawling ban, mechanised trawlers which sweep the fish eggs and young ones, will not be allowed to venture into sea.Catamarans and small boats, which use nets with big gaps, are exempted from the ban.
The ban period is the breeding season of the fish and it is enforced to conserve the fisheries resources. It will save the mother fishes as well as the young ones, thus avoiding the depletion of fisheries resources, Ramalakshmi said.
As the ban is going to hit the livelihood of the fisherfolk, the State government will provide financial assistance to them. Ramalakshmi said the Fisheries Department has proposed a compensation of `4,000 per family ration card to the government like last year. The government has to take the call on increase in the compensation. She said nearly 21,000 families of all four regions of the Union Territory,-Puducherry, Karaikal, Mahe and Yanam, will get the aid.
The mechanised trawlers have been warned against venturing into sea once the ban comes into effect on April 15.