Fishing Communities in india

Intriduction
Fisheries is an important sector in India. It provides employment to millions of people and contributes to food security of the country. With a coastline of over 8,000 km, an Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of over 2 million sq km, and with extensive freshwater resources, fisheries play a vital role. Presently, fisheries and aquaculture contribute 1.07 per cent to the national GDP, and 5.30 per cent to agriculture and allied activities, while the average annual value of output during the Tenth Five Year Plan (2002-2007) was Rs31,682.50 crores.

Fishing communities in India, are not homogenous, as they belong to different castes. These communities have their distinct social, cultural governance structures and traditional practices, depending on the coast, where they inhabit. Atleast 2-3 castes are exclusively involved in marine fishing in each maritime State, and are not related to the mainstream agrarian system. The community institutions, (such as the caste panchayats, peddalu, padu system etc.,)mostly organized along caste, kinship or religious lines, play an important role in resolving conflicts.

Some of them are...

Ø Kerala : Mukkuvar, Dheevara, and pooislan
Ø TamilNadu : Pattinavaras, Mukkuvar, and Paravas
Ø Andhrapradesh : Vadabalijas, Jalaris, Pattapu, and Palles
Ø Orrisa : Jalaris, Kaibartas, Khandayats, and Rajbhanasis
Ø West Bangal : Kaibartans
Ø Gujarati : Kharvas, Kolis nad Macchiyaras
Ø Maharashtra : Kolis
Ø Karnataka : Mogaveeras

some relevent issues
Life became miserable for them when the big companies introduced their mechanised fishing trawlers. Small boat was hardly a match for a trawler. During the monsoon period, between June and August, fishermen stop going out to sea; their small boats can’t cope with the high tide and turbulent sea. Moreover, it’s the breeding season for fish – a time when millions of eggs are laid. But this does not deter the big trawlers from fishing. Despite the government prohibiting fishing during the monsoon period these trawlers often violate prohibitory orders and carry on fishing, destroying the eggs. I believe this could be one of the reasons there is a shortage of fish in the sea. "These heavy trawlers are only given licence to fish in deep sea, but when the catch becomes scarce they encroach on our shallower territories, depriving us of our share. It seems that the authorities are hand in glove with the trawler owners, and our complaints are falling on deaf ears" (Rajen Nair, Guardian Weekly,May 28th 2008 )

The chemical factories located here drain their waste directly into the sea and pollute it. There is also large-scale illegal sand dredging going on in the sea, as more sand is required to meet the demands of the growing construction industry. Due to the dredging the fish no longer come into the shallow waters, and that affects their catch. Every year the price of diesel increases, pushing up the cost of going out to sea in the boatsFishermen are going through one of the worst crises of their time, and they are looking to the government to redress their problems. The government recently announced a $15bn package to the agricultural industry in response to a spate of suicides by farmers who were not able to pay off their bank loans. Their situation is no different from that of the farmers.