Fishing Craft and Gears in Reservoirs of Kerala

Abstract

The fishing craft used in reservoirs for Kerala vary from bamboo raft, traditional coracles and FRP coracles, dugout canoes, plant built canoes and FRP canoes. However few reservoirs like Malampuzha use only rubber tubes as fishing craft. There is always chances for the rubber tube to be damaged and deflated during hauling due to the sharp parts of prawn or fish and could put the fisherman’s life in danger. Fishing craft is essential particularly in large and medium reservoirs as they can save time for reaching the fishing ground as well as to bring the catch to the shore before the fish spoils. Gill net fishing is usually done during night and the fishermen using rubber tubes find it extremely difficult to carry out fishing operations. None of the reservoirs in Kerala use motorized or mechanized boats and maneuver the craft by using oars. This can be encouraged especially in reservoirs where the water is used for drinking. Sail boats as well as solar powered boats can be thought of as an alternative means of propulsion which will not pollute the water. There is no standard design of fishing craft for these reservoirs. There is an urgent need to upgrade the existing fishing systems and provide standard fishing craft & gears for various reservoirs in Kerala. Gill nets are predominantly used in most of the reservoirs in Kerala. More than 90% of the gill nets are made of PA monofilament. Use of very fine multifilament gillnets is going to be a problem, if not handled responsibly. Generally fine gillnets are not repaired and are used and thrown after a season which will harm the ecosystem and many also lead to ghost fishing. There are no mesh regulations in gill nets and the fishermen use various types and sizes of gill nets. This should be discouraged and gill nets with optimum mesh sizes should be used to harvest different species. Most reservoirs have tree stumps in the bottom and it becomes difficult for the fishermen to use gill nets in these areas as their nets gets entangled in the tree stumps which damages their net. In such reservoirs gill nets without foot rope and sinkes are operated to tackle this problem to some extent. Other fishing methods like lines with appropriate baits are also used in reservoirs. Various destructive fishing methods like use of explosives, poison, and electrical fishing are still prevalent in some reservoirs though these practices are banned. Regular stocking with healthy fish and prawn seeds may be encouraged in all the reservoirs to make the fishing operations viable and ensure protein rich food for the poor people settled around the reservoirs in Kerala.