Marine fish catch in Dakshina Kannada drops by over 28%

Mangalore Today News Network

Mangaluru, April 7, 2025: Marine fish catch in Dakshina Kannada dropped by 28.04 % in the last financial year, according to a senior official of State Fisheries Department.

The fish catch came down to 1.72 lakh tonnes in 2024-25 from 2.39 lakh tonnes during 2023-24, according to D. Siddaiah, Joint Director, Department of Fisheries, Dakshina Kannada.

Stakeholders of fisheries sector attribute the fall in catch to various factors including rise in temperature, illegal fishing using lights, over (excessive) fishing and bull trawling.

Stressing on the need to extend the about two-month ban (June and July) on fishing during the fish breeding season to three months, (till August), Mr. Siddaiah said that there should be uniformity in the ban across the West coast. All States in the West coast should arrive at a consensus to impose the three-month ban (from June to August). Extending the ban for one more month will help in boosting fish production, he said.

Concurring with the uniform three-month ban proposal, Nitin Kumar, a former Chairman of Karnataka Fisheries Development Corporation said that unscientific and illegal fishing are happening across the West Coast. All fishermen should sit across to address the issues. On the other hand government agencies should also check illegal fishing activities.

Trawling boats achored

Mr. Kumar said that about 70% of trawling boats in Mangaluru have anchored now without catch. They began anchoring since past three months.

Boats engaged in deep sea fishing got good catch in August and September of this (2024-25) fishing season. The catch came down slowly later. Though it was expected to go up further in January it did not happen, Mr. Kumar said.

According to the State Department of Fisheries, the total fish production in Karnataka fell from 12.24 lakh tonnes in 2022-23 to 9.75 lakh tonnes in 2023-24. In that, marine fish production dropped from 7.30 lakh tonnes to 5.42 lakh tonnes during the same period.

Uncontrolled growth of fishing boats

Meanwhile, a report ‘Rapid Assessment of Blue Economy Potential in Karnataka’ prepared by College of Fisheries, Mangaluru in 2021 when A. Senthil Vel was the dean of the college said that, the marine fisheries sector witnessed acute unsustainability, unrestrained increase in fishing vessels and rampant use of destructive fishing methods in the past decade. In addition the report said that, unwavering demand from the fish meal industry have together led to a decline in commercially important fish stocks and adverse impacts on the livelihoods of fishermen. Unsustainability is further fueled by non-uniform policies (fishing ban duration, penalities, enforcement etc.) between adjoining states adding to the woes of fishermen.

Another threat to marine fisheries, the report said, is the effect of marine pollution.  

“...The marine life faces extreme threats from pollution and other anthropogenic activities in a number of ways such as destruction of their habitat, acute poisoning from toxic wastes, adverse alteration of water quality, sub-lethal effects of pollutants causing impairment of feeding, growth, migration, resistance to disease and parasites, interference with reproduction, bacteriological and viral contamination, bio accumulation of toxic metals and organic substances etc...” it said.