CHENNAI: A recent rapid stock status assessment done by Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI) in Tamil Nadu coastal waters shows the quantity of landings of many fish varieties, which was once in abundance, is now declining across Palk Bay, Coromandel Coast, and the Gulf of Mannar.
For instance, the historical maximum catch of oil sardine is 1,24,276 MT and the recent three-year average catch has dropped to 40,766 MT, a fall of a staggering 67 per cent. In the Gulf of Mannar, oil sardine landings fell from 34,559 MT to 2,776 MT, a 92 per cent depletion. One reason for this was, in Thoothukudi area, the gillnetters target lesser sardine and avoid oil sardine shoals due to a lack of local demand. But the landings of lesser sardine also dropped by 40 per cent. This raises the question of sustainability.
However, the long-awaited draft Indian Marine Fisheries Bill (IMF), 2021, which the Union government is planning to table in the Monsoon session of Parliament, does not make a mention of sustainability and conservation unlike its earlier drafts.
Sources told Express the Bill is more of a framework heavily focussed on checking unregulated fishing in India’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). “But the original Bill, which was framed after consultations with all maritime States, research institutes like CMFRI, and fishermen bodies, was voluminous, and included several sub-clauses and deals with the issues of sustainability and biodiversity. But the Union government has removed several portions. We hope the Bill will be amended,” said a senior official.
The CMFRI study shows that there is currently an over-capacity of fishery. In order to keep the effort sustainable, the maximum number of mechanised trawlers may be limited to 1,698 (79.4 per cent of the existing) in Coromandel Coast, 685 (75.4 per cent of the existing) in Gulf of Mannar and 610 (23 per cent of the existing) in Palk Bay.
The engine power of the boat is also more than required.... Only vessels which conform to the specifications of the government may be registered and permitted for fishing, the study says. It also highlights the need to control the indiscriminate harvest of juveniles and uncontrolled exploitation of non-edible resources.
“Earlier, non-edible fish were taken by merchants and sent to fish meal plants after drying. It was only an ancillary activity. But, with the setting up of fish oil companies, which require fresh fish, the demand for fresh by-catch became very high. This, coupled with income, acted as an impetus to undertake even targeted fishing for by-catch in the Gulf of Mannar and places like Nagapattinam,” a CMFRI scientist said.
This resulted in an increase in exploitation of certain resources, which otherwise formed only normal by-catch.
In Nagapattinam, there is even targeted fishing for low-value fish. Sometimes, even quality fish, like mackerel and oil sardine, are used for oil extraction. At the Chennai fishing harbour, the estimated low-value by-catch in a single day trawl was 13 per cent (3,000 tonnes) of the total landing in 2008, which increased to 17 per cent (5,000 tonnes) in 2011. The reported discard was only 1 per cent.
K Bharathi, president, South Indian Fishermen Welfare Association, said the draft IMF Bill favours the interests of big vessels and ignores the welfare of small-scale fishermen. “The burden of sustainability can’t be placed solely on fishermen. What has the government done to improve fishing stocks? All the pollution is discharged into the sea and estuaries,” he stated.