the goan I network
MARGAO
Eleven days into the new fishing season and the Cutbona fishing jetty “ South Goa’s fishing hub “ wears a deserted look.
Migrant labourers, who have reported at the jetty, ahead of the season are out for fishing, but in the local water bodies.
Several insulated refrigerator trucks, meant for transporting fish, are parked on the jetty road.
And, the 150-odd fishing vessels, operating from the Cutbona jetty, continue to drop anchor at the river Sal. Reason: The hostile navigation conditions at the river Sal has come in the way of the fishing vessels venturing out in the sea in the new season.
While their counterparts operating from other jetties are bracing up to venture out in the sea in a day or two with weather conditions subsiding after stormy winds, Cutbona boat owners will have to wait for the sand bar to abate for the vessels to venture out.
A visit to the Cutbona fishing jetty revealed that dozens of migrant labourers who had reported at the fishing jetty, are busy with fishing rods at the nearby water bodies.
While many an enthusiastic amongst the lot tried their luck at the water body with traditional fishing nets, one could find many a migrant labour with rods at the water ponds and ogors with fishing rods.
The jetty wore a deserted look. With fishing vessels still anchored in the river with no change in the hostile navigation conditions, there was no discernible activity along the half a kilometer-long jetty. It was lunch time and a group of migrant crew, who have reported for work were having lunch aboard the vessels. And, the insulated trucks that had all come in droves at the jetty with the hope of transporting fish catch, are all found parked along the jetty road.
Leader of the purse seine fishing association Seby Cardozo said the sand bar at the river Sal has played spoil sport to the fishing season this time round.
“Though the weather conditions in the sea were not conducive for fishing, the sand bar also came in the way of the boat owners operating from the Cutbona jetty from venturing out,” he said.
Seby pointed out that with the weather conditions subsiding now, many a fishing vessel along Goa coast may now venture out in a day or two, but fishing boats will have to wait for the sand bar to abate.
“A delegation of the boat owners from Cutbona had called on Fisheries Minister Filipe Neri Rodrigues recently and he had assured to send a surveyor to take stock of the situation”, Seby said.
Given that the matter pertaining to the construction of the training wall at the river mouth is pending in the National Green Tribunal (NGT), Seby disclosed that the boat owners may explore the possibility of filing a plea to expedite the disposal of the case in view of the huge losses incurred by the fishing community. Though the government had mooted a training wall at the river Sal mouth for smooth navigation for the fishing boats, the project ran into rough weather and
is now pending in the NGT for over a year.
