Date:28/04/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/04/28/stories/2008042857610400.htm

Andhra Pradesh

Trying times for fishermen community

V. Raghavendra

A poor catch, expensive fishing gear and rising prices force many a fishermen family to starve

KAKINADA: Twenty-five-year-old Ramisetti Kondababu, a traditional fisherman of Uppada village, starts his day, as always anticipating a good catch that will fetch him at least Rs. 50-100. If he is lucky, he can afford to buy a small quantity of groceries. Otherwise, the entire family starves.

Most fisher folk, like Kondababu, sell their catch without setting aside anything for their consumption, in the hope of using a part of the sale proceeds to buy essentials and reinvest in trade. But they are left with inadequate amounts to purchase even a kg of vegetables.

Their plight is pathetic as their catches are depleting. Rising inflation has reduced their access to food items. They can only dream of eating rice and pulses.

The saying poverty and deprivation are akin to quicksand fits them. Worse, the cost of fishing gear is reaching the sky. As a result they end up in debts. To wriggle out, they require money which they have to borrow.

“Starvation is not new to us. Rarely do we have money to prepare a vegetable curry or even pickle because of the price rise. But our wages remain the same. The rice we get from fair price shops is of poor quality and gives us little energy to keep us afloat on the mighty ocean,” Kondababu told The Hindu.

“We used to cook red gram twice a week earlier, but not now due to the steep rise in its price it’s not the case. Similarly, most vegetables, pulses and cereals are beyond our reach,” he lamented.

Seventy-year-old M. Kannaiah, who had seen good times when fishing was the most sought after vocation of the poor, said some villagers had mortgaged their ration cards in return for Rs 1,000, which sustains them for a few weeks.

Investment cycles

Venkatesh Salagrama, Director of Integrated Coastal Management, a Kakinada-based consultancy firm focusing on sustainable livelihoods for the coastal poor, said the gravity of the situation could be gauged from the fact that 60 per cent of traditional fishermen have short “cycles of investments” of Rs. 1,000.

Their families depend heavily on women’s income and if they are idle, there will be nothing to feed on. Moreover, fishermen are facing a seasonal mechanised fishing ban which could not have come at a more inopportune time.