Accepting that the fishing ban can be extended to safeguard the fish breeding season, the Old Cross Fishing Canoe Owners Cooperative Society at Vasco has insisted that they should continue to be allowed to net solar shrimps before the end of the fishing ban.
Netting shrimp
"The fishing ban is a must and should be implemented strictly and earlier, the ban every year used to be from June 1 to August 15. However, with the solar shrimps appearing at the end of July, we requested the government to have the fishing ban till July 31,” said Old Cross Fishing Canoe Owners Cooperative Society President Custodio D'Souza.
“Traditional fishermen have to catch solar shrimps when it is available because it disappears to a different location altogether. We, therefore, requested the department to allow us a chance to net the solar shrimp, even if it is a bit earlier and before the end of the fishing ban period.”
“As far as the demand of some fishing association for a longer period is concerned, we agree to it because we will get more fish if we don't interfere in the breeding season. Sometimes, we realise that a lot of fish netted during the ban period have roe, which could otherwise have increased the quantity of the fish in the sea."
Harassment charge
Last year, the traditional fishermen in Velsao accused the Fisheries department of harassing them, even though the fishing ban was not applicable to traditional fishermen.
In one such instance on July 21, 2022, the Fisheries officials impounded 20 fishing boats and auctioned 364 kg of fish during a raid at Velsao beach after several boats had ventured into the sea during the fishing ban.
Acting on a complaint that illegal fishing was being carried out by fishermen using unregistered nets off the Velsao coast, fisheries officials reached Velsao and noticed that some fishing vessels were coming to land their fish catch and a total of 20 boats were impounded on site.
Eleven boats were found with a catch of fish and a total of 364 kg of fish were auctioned by officials amounting to Rs 47,320.
Speaking to The Goan at that time, the traditional fishermen said they had a Supreme Court order stating that they were permitted to fish during monsoons using one motor of 9.9 HP, but with the sea-going rough, they keep a spare motor handy as safety precautions.
Decline in shrimps?
Another traditional fisherman, Aliston Pinto, told The Goan that last year there was no truth that the catch of solar shrimps would decline due to fishing in the breeding period.
"The count of these shrimps is on the rise every year and this would not be possible if they were being caught during the breeding period.”
“These raids are politically motivated by a few people who are differentiating between traditional fishing and mechanised fishing and these fights have affected the entire fishing business in general," said Pinto.
