Pics: Spoorthi Ullal
Daijiworld Media Network - Mangalore (MD)
Mangalore, Jul 24: A three days seminar on 'Knowledge on the Responsibility of Deep Sea Fishing' was inaugurated on Thursday July 24 at Fisheries Engineering and Technology department, Fisheries University, Hoige Bazar here.
The seminar is organized by Karnataka Veterinary, Animal and Fisheries Sciences University, College of Fisheries under the project of 'ATMA'.
Dr S Varadaraj welcomed the guests. Dr B Hanumantappa, training co-ordinator and lecturer of Fisheries College gave an introduction on the works done by the fishermen.
Nithin Kumar, president of Troll Boat Fishermen Association inaugurated the programme.
"There is a limit imposed on the amount of fishing so that the marine life can be saved for future generation. There are fishermen who catch certain fish which are not supposed to be killed. The government should step in and should make a rule in this regard. Some species which are on the verge of extinction," he said.
He also said that the industries were leaving the wastes into the sea which had caused the death of many fish.
"This is the breeding season for fish. That is why the fishing is banned during the rainy season," he added.
V K Shetty, managing director of Karnataka Fisheries Development Corporation, Mangalore was the chief guest of the programme.
He said, "There was a time when there were lot of fish and we were getting fresh fish all the time. But now the fish are on the verge of extinction due to unscientific ways of fishing. Fishermen who do not have the knowledge of fishing should be trained."
He added that the Harbours of Mangalore and Karwar seem to be small as the number of boats had increased drastically.
"In recent years 300 to 400 boats have been built. The fish are decreasing and the boats are also increasing. In this regard the government should think about it and the new boats should be provided only as the replacement for the spoilt boats," he said.
In his presidential speech, Dr B A Sham Sunder, said, "We do not want all the fish to vanish in the future and if this happens then the future generation will not have the chance to fish. Per year we can catch fishes upto 4 million metric tons. But so far we have already reached to 3 million metric tons."
Dr Jayanaika, staffs of Fisheries College and trainees were also present during the occasion.