The annual 47-day ban on trawling off the coast of Kerala starts Sunday midnight amid worries of dwindling catch.
Around 3,200 boats are off the sea across the State along with 600 gillnet boats and 60 purseiners. In Ernakulam district, around 1,000 boats reached the shores after fishing operations were stopped late on Saturday night.
With the rains playing truant, traditional fishermen are worried that the new season will not offer much hope. Out of the nearly 200 outboard and inboard boats operating out of fishing harbours in and around Kochi, only around 30 have ventured out in the recent weeks, said Charles George of Matsya Thozhilali Aikyavedi, TUCI.
He said that the State and Union governments must immediately intervene to help the fishermen.
The ban on trawling over the next 47 days comes after much uncertainty over an order from the Union government banning all fishing operations for 61 days starting June 1. Fisheries industry sources said that most of the workers from outside Kerala who work in the sector had left for their homes before June 1 on account of the Union government order.
Meanwhile, the district administration has warned that strict action would be taken against trawlers found violating the ban order. Only traditional boats will be supplied fuel from the bunks operating on the coast, said a communication from the Public Relations Department.