With the 61-day fishing ban in force in the state from June 1, over 800 mechanized boats will reportedly not venture into the sea. The uniform fishing ban which extends to 12 nautical miles is being implemented in Goa and it’s neighboring states of Maharashtra and Karnataka.
This is an annual procedure which avoids disturbance caused by trawlers in order to allow fish to breed. The price of fish available in the market will obviously shoot up during this ban period. The fish which has been stored in the cold storage for the past several months will now find it’s way into the fish markets. This fish which has been stored in cold storage all these months, when fish was available in plenty, will be sold as “fresh fish” during the period of the fishing ban.
The government now makes fish available to the people through the mobile vans. As fish is the staple diet of Goans, it would be in the fitness of things for the government to make fresh-water fish available to the public through the mobile vans at a reduced price during the fishing ban. After all, Goans cannot be expected to go without fish on their dining table for the entire period of two months.
Adelmo Fernandes, Vasco
