Indian Deep Sea Fisheries - Its Prospects, Issues and Challenges

Abstract

Fisheries play a pivotal role in the economic development of all maritime nations. The fisheries sector contributes as foreign exchange earner, ensures nutritional security and generates employment opportunities. With absolute rights on the EEZ, India has also acquired the responsibility to conserve, develop and optimally exploit the marine resources up to 200 nautical miles off our coastline [1]. The current exploitation from the marine capture sector is 3.44 million tonnes in 2013-14 as against the potential of 4.41 million tonnes. Indian marine fish harvest mostly centers around coastal waters up to 100 m depth and about 90 per cent of the catch comes from up to 50 m. A recent revalidation of marine fisheries potential has shown that the fishing pressure on the stock in near shore waters has gone up considerably and signs of over exploitation of species is becoming increasingly evident and further increase in effort in the coastal sector would be detrimental to sustainable yield. In case of India, the total production for Yellowfin tuna has fluctuated from 7544 tonnes in 2011 to 22, 155 tonnes in 2008. However, in case of Skipjack tuna, production has declined from 18934 in 2011 to 7212 tonnes in 2012. In other words, India is presently harvesting about 12 % of the potential and the balance can be optimally harvested using a judicious mix of technology, infrastructure and human resource development. As the coastal fishery faces issues like the sustainability, resources conservation and management; there is an imperative need for finding an alternative resource for the nutritional security. Exploitation of under exploited non-conventional resources from the distant waters of the Indian EEZ will be the only solution. There is ample scope of increasing production by venturing into deeper waters of the EEZ, which holds a potential of 1.7 million tonnes of underexploited and unexploited fin fishes and shellfishes. This indicates there is an ample scope for development of this sector. In this context, the aim of the present study was to analyse scenario of marine fisheries in India with respect to potential and discuss in detail the Deep-sea fishing, its Prospects, Issues and Challenges in India.