Traditional fishermen in Goa have sounded alarm over significant decline in this year’s fish catch, attributing it to the intrusion of Maharashtra and Karnataka trawlers into Goan waters. According to them, these trawlers are depriving local fishermen of their livelihood by gobbling up the majority of the catch, leaving them with meagre returns.
Expressing their dismay, that even their fish is taken from their land, fishermen pointed to the alarming sight of nearly 40 trawlers from neighbouring States plundering fish from water adjoining Goa.
Despite lodging numerous complaints, they lamented that the authorities’ apathy, and cited delayed responses from coastal police and fisheries department officials, who often arrive too late to intervene effectively. This delay, they clarify, isn’t solely due to the inefficiency of law enforcement but also because they lack adequate resources, such as boats, to tackle such violations.
Fishermen have appealed to the Chief Minister for urgent action, demanding that the coastal police be given at least five boats to intercept and catch rogue trawlers who such fish from waters adjoining Goa
Fishermen struggling to financially survive have repeatedly complained about the rampant intrusion of trawlers that jeopardises their traditional fishing business and livelihood, that have been sustained by them for generations.
In their plea to the government, fishermen underscored the urgency of safeguarding age-old local businesses from the encroachment of non-Goan fishermen, emphasizing the need for decisive measures to curb the disruptive activities of these outside trawlers and ensure the sustainability of traditional fishing practices in Goan waters.
“The fish catch is gradually decreasing. We had gone fishing at 5.30am and we returned after three hours. Earlier, we used to get at least three to four baskets of all types of fish including crabs. Today after three hours, we got half a basket of fish. Four of us had gone. The reason is that trawlers from Maharashtra and Karnataka fish in Goan waters. They come in groups of 15 to 20 trawlers or sometimes 40 trawlers. So if someone tries to stop them, they can encircle us,” fisherman Pele Fernandes from Benaulim narrated.
Complaining about ineffectiveness of the surveillance mechanism, Pele added, “On several occasion we have intimated the Coastal Police and the Fisheries department. But they come after one or one and half hour. I do not blame the police. I have even told CM Pramod Sawant to give them five to 10 patrol boats. This has not happened.”
“With the plundering of our fish resources by outsiders, we do not get any fish. For the rampon which takes one and a half to two hours to pull. Even then we get four to six baskets of mackerels. They have finished our fish resources. They do LED fishing at night. We have stopped begging with the authorities. Now we have left it to God,” he said.