The big ban divide

KOCHI: Even as the date of the trawling ban for this season has been declared, the rift between the trawling boat owners and the traditional fishermen has once again come to the fore. While the trawling boat owners contend that a one-sided ban on their boats cannot help increase the fish population, the traditional fishermen say the argument holds no water. “We have raised the issue before Ports Minister  K Babu on the sidelines of a meeting held on trawling ban that will come into effect on June 15. The nature of the so-called traditional fishing boats has undergone a sea change after 1988 when the ban was first introduced in the state. The inboard vessels now being used are mostly larger than the trawlers, the fishing nets are heavier and stronger and the engines are much more faster,” said general secretary of All-Kerala Boat Owners Association Joseph Xavier Kallackpurakal.The trawling boat owners allege that the ring seine nets used by traditional boat owners weigh as much as 5,000 kg and reach a depth of 90 metres. “The average depth of the coastal waters is  just 50 metres but these nets have double the length which means that these heavy nets are being dragged upon the ocean floor, seriously damaging the fish habitat,” said Kallackpurakal.The traditional fishermen, meanwhile, say that there are no records of depleting population of fish due to such practices. “From the time the trawling ban was introduced, there has not been any decline in fish production. If the practices adopted by  traditional fishermen were so damaging it would have been evident in the studies conducted by various scientific bodies,” said  Charles George, secretary of Kerala Fishermen Coordination Committee.Another argument is that during monsoon pelagic fish (surface water fish) are found in plenty and after that the fish will migrate away from the Kerala coast. “Hence a ban during this season will affect the fishing industry. Regulation in the form of standardisation of the vessels and the gear is acceptable but a complete ban cannot serve the purpose,” said Charles George.