About
two weeks ago, the Department of Fisheries
declared the annual 61-day fishing ban that began on June 1 and will
last till July 31, this year. For those unfamiliar with this
phenomenon, every year, the department disallows trawlers, with the
exception of registered motorised canoes, to venture out for fishing
in the sea, to facilitate the breeding of fish throughout the
spawning season. So if you thought that the ban is a perfect recipe
to disturb the Goan diet, in the absence of the champion ingredient
of the ‘fish thali’ – the fish, – you are wrong.
Despite
the ban, Sandeep Gaonkar’s morning duties haven’t changed. The
owner of Annapurna Bar and Restaurant in Usgao-Tisk, Sandeep is
extremely particular about the quality of the fish that is served in
his restaurant and hence one can find him in the fish market,
carefully inspecting what interests him on that particular day. He
says, “Yes, we do get fresh fish even in the monsoons. While the
fishing ban is imposed on Goa and parts of Maharashtra, fresh fish is
transported to Goa from the eastern and southern coastal states like
Kerala, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh on a daily basis. And then, there
is the fresh water fish which is popular during the monsoons, in
addition to dried fish. Everything is available, provided one knows
where to find it.”
Situated
in Caranzalem, Peep Kitchen is a popular haunt thanks to the mean
‘fish curry rice’ that is produced from their kitchen. With the
two-month fishing ban being imposed, proprietor Amey Naik hasn’t
made any major changes in the ‘thali’ or in the seafood section
of the menu, despite the fact that “it is an expensive affair to
procure fish that bears an overpriced tag during this period”. But
most importantly, he is happy that regardless of where the catch of
the day is procured from, the freshness of the fish is not
compromised. Amey says, “Usually one can get kingfish for about Rs
350-400 per kg. But during the ban period, we have to get frozen
kingfish that costs about Rs 600-700 per kg. The 30% price increase
is across the board – be it kingfish or chonak. But thanks to
modern storage practices, these products come vacuum-frozen, which
helps retain the freshness of the fish.”
While
industry stakeholders like the ones above are confident about
procuring fresh versions of most types of fish even during the ban
season, a few exceptions like Squids and Mussels continue to be a
prized acquisition. Knowing that the ban is for a greater good, the
61-day period is not long enough to be unbearable for most, and since
one can still get fresh fish from the local market, the ban isn’t
really a good excuse to raise a stink.
