In the absence of such a regulation, even the smallest aqua fauna, including fingerlings, are caught in fishnets across the vast coastline in the country, thereby threatening their growth, said Vasudeva Boloor, vice-president of the forum. He said developed countries have formulated policies on the size of mesh of fishnets so as to provide escape routes to fingerlings. Expert opinionVeerappa Gowda, director of Department of Fisheries, said there was no specific rule on the size of fish that can be caught during marine fishing. Mr. Gowda also noted that the Centre could bring out broad guidelines and it is for State governments to frame rules as fish size varies from place to place. Meanwhile, Maharashtra has banned purse-seine fishing within the territorial waters of its coast.

Source: The Hindu August 07, 2017 04:20 UTC