The real crisis in India’s fisheries, Pg8

Key Highlights:

• The Indian government, citing Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI) data, claims 91.1% of 135 fish stocks evaluated in 2022 are sustainable.
• The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), however, suggests India's marine fisheries production has plateaued due to fully exploited stocks and overcapacity.
• CMFRI primarily relies on landing data for sustainability assessments, unlike other nations that use more reliable stock assessments at sea.
• There is a significant decline and destruction of inshore benthic environments, impacting traditional fishing grounds.
• The uncontrolled expansion of mechanised trawling, with over 64,000 vessels, is a major contributor to inshore ecosystem degradation and conflicts with small-scale fishers.

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Detailed Insights:

• The government's optimistic assessment contrasts sharply with the FAO's view that most major stocks are fully exploited.
• CMFRI's methodology, based on landing data, is questioned for its accuracy in determining actual fish stock availability.
• The decline of inshore ecosystems is attributed to factors like dam construction, mangrove destruction, and industrial, agricultural, and urban pollution.
• India's narrow continental shelf, particularly outside Gujarat and Maharashtra, makes inshore waters crucial for commercially valuable species.
• Mechanised trawling, introduced around 1960, has expanded significantly with few restrictions on new entries or vessel upgrades.
• The continuous ploughing of the seabed by trawlers leads to a decline in marine life and imperils the livelihoods of small-scale fishers.
• Regulations like the 5 NM prohibition for mechanised boats are ineffective due to insufficient coastal state patrolling and lack of fisher involvement in management.
• The government's push for deep-sea fishing is viewed cautiously by FAO, which estimates only marginal potential increases from such resources.
• Current fisheries policy is criticised for imposing extra costs on fishers for distant water travel while neglecting proper management of productive inshore waters.
• The political influence of mechanised boat fishers often hinders effective management, as seen in the Palk Bay conflict with Sri Lankan fishers.

Key Concepts Involved:

• Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI): A leading Indian institution responsible for marine fisheries research and assessment.
• Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO): A specialized agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger.
• Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ): A sea zone over which a state has special rights regarding the exploration and use of marine resources, extending up to 200 nautical miles from the coast.
• Territorial Seas: A belt of coastal waters extending up to 12 nautical miles from the baseline of a coastal state, over which the state has full sovereignty.