Interaction with fishermen at Caranzalem, Goa

    An interaction was organized with the fishermen of Caranzalem, Goa on 19 October 2024. The fishermen of the region operate both shore seine net (locally known as Rampan) and gillnets (locally known as “Kattayi”). The shore seine net is almost 500-600 m long and hauled by 50-60 men. The operation usually happens in the early morning from 3 am to 5 am. The fish catch was mainly consisted of lesser sardines, oil sardine, mackerel, thryssa, shrimps, croakers, barracuda, silver bellies, silver biddies, rays and crabs. A total of 70 people including fishermen (40), marketing agents (10) and vendors (20) (50 men and 20 women) were present in the site. Dr Sreekanth GB, Senior Scientist (FRM), ICAR-CCARI interacted with the fishermen regarding the challenges in operation and marketing of the catch. Fishermen responded that they market the large sized fishes locally and the rest is sent for making fish meal. They also face challenges due to the high abundance of jelly fish and pufferfish in the catch, which create hitches fishing and fish catch sorting. The fishermen assured that the information related to the catch and species can be shared to the institute through photographs and direct interactions. Dr Sreekanth suggested the fishermen to utilize the harvested fish to the full extent and to put efforts to reduce the bycatch and discards.