The ban on fishing operations using mechanised and motorised boats in the Bay of Bengal for a distance of 230 km from the coast came into force in south Andhra from Friday to preserve fish and other marine resources during the breeding season.
The ban will remain in force till June 14 to help fishermen in the coastal districts of Prakasam, Nellore and Tirupati get a better catch coinciding with the onset of southwest monsoon, according to Fisheries Joint Director A. Chandrasekhara Reddy.
Fishermen who have anchored their boats on the shore are a happier lot as the India Meteorological Department (IMD) predicted a normal southwest monsoon. The June-September rainfall in the country could be 99% of the long-period average (LPA) with a margin error of 5%, the IMD said, bringing relief to fishermen who now expect a good catch this year at the end of the closed season.
“Copious rains during the southwest monsoon season means a good catch for us,” former sarpanch of Kothapatnam Pallepalam fishermen hamlet Prabhu Prakash Naidu said. He also shared the worries of fellow fishermen over global warming adversely affecting the breeding of fish. The annual ban period will be productively utilised by the fishermen to overhaul their boats and also work under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS).
Meanwhile, the district reorganisation exercise undertaken by the Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy Government has provided access to the sea to Rayalaseema with the inclusion of Sullurpeta and Gudur Assembly segments with a 60-km coastline.
The truncated Nellore district will only have a 110-km-long coastline with the addition of a 20-km coastline following the addition of Kandukur Assembly segment. Prakasam district will see a maximum reduction of 50 km in its coastline following the creation of a new Bapatla district and the loss of Kandukur Assembly segment to Nellore district.
Enumeration exercise
Enumeration of fishermen would be undertaken across the region on Saturday to provide compensation of ₹10,000 each to the boat owners as also the crew. The compensation amount would be credited directly into the bank accounts of fishermen latest by the second week of May, Mr. Chandrasekhara Reddy added.
Special teams have been constituted to strictly enforce the ban on fishing using mechanised and motorised crafts. There are over 40,000 seafaring fishermen in the region including 21,000 in Nellore district and 6,000 in Tirupati district. The enumeration will be undertaken in a strict manner to exclude those fishermen who have already benefited under other welfare schemes of the Union and State Governments including old age pension, Mr. Chandrasekhar Reddy added.
Meanwhile, a group of fishermen in the coastal Ethamukala village urged the State government to enhance the financial assistance to ₹15,000 to each fisherman and hike subsidy on diesel taking into account the hefty hike in fuel prices.
