Goa Fishing Communities Oppose Centre’s Proposed EEZ Fisheries Rules, Demand Dedicated Law

Goa's small-scale fishing communities have joined a nationwide move-ment opposing the Centre's proposed Sustainable Har-nessing of Fisheries in the Exclusive Economic Zone of India Rules, 2025, with the State unit of the National Federation of Small-Scale Fishworkers submitting detailed objections to the Ministry of Fisheries, Ani-mal Husbandry and Dair ying and demanding that the government enact a full-fledged law specifically for regulating fishing in the Indian Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).

across The Goa unit's submis sion, part of a coordinated response by fishing com-munities India's coastline, argues that the draft rules fail to adequate-ly protect traditional fish-ing interests and circum-vent proper parliamentary oversight. The federation's concerns are particularly relevant for Goa's fishing sector, which operates ex-tensively in waters beyond

"The government of India's role in legislating regulations for fishing in the EEZ has not been welcomed by the people of the country in general and by the coast-al fishing communities in particular," NFSF stated in its submission dated August 30, 2025. The federation points to unsuccessful pre-vious attempts that faced widespread opposition from fishing communities and state governments, in-cluding Kerala and Tamil Nadu, which rejected the 2021 bill outright.

The current controver-sy centers on the govern-ment's decision to frame fishing regulations as sub-ordinate rules under the existing Territorial Waters, Continental Shelf, Exclusive Economic Zone and Other Maritime Zones Act, 1976, rather than creating dedi-cated primary legislation.