Kanyakumari (Tamil Nadu): The Tamil Nadu Fisheries Department officials seized Karnataka boats that caught fish in prohibited area in the TN territorial waters. The Savala fish were auctioned for 20 lakh rupees. Action was taken after the TN fishermen from coastal villages have complained to the authorities that the trawlers from Karnataka are illegally catching fish in areas banned by the Tamil Nadu government.
As a result of this, last Friday, the officials of the Fisheries Department initiated action against Karnataka Trawlers that were catching fish in forbidden areas in the Arabian Sea. The Kulachal Fisheries Department officials surrounded 3 boats from Karnataka engaged in fishing in the banned Arabian Sea coastal areas. Subsequently, they interrogated 30 fishermen from Karnataka and Andhra who came on 3 barges.
On investigation, it was revealed that they had illegally caught Savala fish worth several lakhs of rupees. Following this, the officials of the TN Fisheries Department seized the three boats namely Amriteshwari, Amrithananda and Ajana and the fish in them and registered a case against the owners of the three boats under the Tamil Nadu Sea Fisheries Regulation Act.
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Also, the action was taken by auctioning the tonnage of carp seized from the powerboats for 20 lakh rupees and imposing fines on the boats. Although the boats are from Karnataka, they are mostly staffed by fishermen from Tamil Nadu. They come here to fish because they know the currents of the Arabian Sea. There is no restriction on trawlers to catch Savala fish in the deep sea. But the marine resources are affected due to barges catching Savala fish in the coastal areas, according to the fisheries department.
