The fish catch during the past few days at a few stretches off Alappuzha sea coast has been bountiful. Shoals of fish, mostly mackerel and sardines, have been found in abundance, bringing better income to the fisherfolk. People call it chakara,’ though experts do not agree. The unexpected bounty has brought a pleasant surprise to the fishermen who have been waiting for a good catch for months together. Fishermen living along the Kerala sea coast used to be ecstatic at the sight of chakara in the past. But over the years, the occurrence of the phenomenon has been on a decline. Chakara is known as mudbank in scientific parlance. It occurs in the form of a calm area in the coastal sea where shoals of fish appear during monsoon season, points out V. Dinakaran, Matsyafed chairman. Mudbank is the suspended natural slime washed into the sea from the hinterlands by the monsoon rain. Experts who have studied the phenomenon are of the opinion that mudbanks attract fish due to the rich content of organic matter. Chakara has been weak during the past few years. The monsoon months of June and July this year saw an elusive chakara as the phenomenon was experienced on a small level at a few stretches. The catch was poor during the monsoon. There has been an improved catch in recent days at north Paravur, Chethi, and a few other places. While the chakara is generally seen as a calm area not far from the shore, the catch this time is from far off locations, Mr. Dinakaran points out, underlying the argument that the abundance of fish caught in recent days is not chakara. The mud that had been washed ashore earlier remains there and fishermen have been able to move out into the sea from the places as they are safe landing area, he says. The indiscriminate fishing in outer sea by vessels of other States and foreign countries have caused much harm, especially when the domestic fishermen are prevented from venturing into the sea during the trawl ban period. The different periods of trawl ban observed by various States along the western and eastern coasts have also caused sharp decrease in the fish catch, according to him. Fisheries experts and scientists have already expressed their opinions on the disappearance of chakara as a direct impact of climate change. Alappuzha sea coast had witnessed a year ago, a rare phenomenon dubbed as heat burst,’ a sudden gust of high velocity moist and hot air from the sea, resulting in wilting of green shoots during monsoon, hinting at the change.
2016, The Hindu