Irrespectiveof the ban on fishing and closure of jetties due to the lockdown, thestaple food was offered for sale everywhere “ right from theroadsides to the junctions to prominent meeting points.
Evenas policemen in jeeps patrolled the Cutbona fishing jetty on Fridayto ensure no activity took place, fish was made available in plentyin Nuvem, courtesy local MLA Wilfred D’Sa.
That’snot all. While the SGPDA wholesale fish market and the retail marketsin the city were shut down by the police, fish was available alongthe roadsides and outside housing societies.
Giventhat the Fisheries Department has shut all the jetties following thelatest directions to stop all operations by April 2, questions wereraised over the sources of the fish being sold.
Thisquestion assumes significance and comes against the backdrop of thefact that the government has claimed that the borders are sealed andthe fishing jetties are shut. The wholesale fish market and the PDAretail market were forcibly shut by the men-in-uniform since thelockdown came into force since last week.
Sourcesin the know informed the lockdown has created a new set of vendors,who seem to be making hay while the sun shines. With Niz Goemkarsdenied of their staple food in the initial days of the lockdown, theyrushed to anyone and everyone selling fish, as unscrupulous personsliterally converted the nook and corners of the state into makeshiftfish markets right under the nose of the authorities.
Takenote that while the availability of fish at unauthorized places gavea relief to fish-loving Goemkars, questions are being raised infishing circles whether the fish offered for sale was brought outfrom the fish processing plants, most of which are involved in theexport business.
Presidentof Cutbona Boat Owners Union Savio D’Silva has pooh-poohed therationale behind the government's decision to stop fishing activitiesat the jetties, while allowing fish from other sources to make itspresence felt everywhere. “Is the government aware of the source ofthe fish presently being sold along the roadsides, whether it comesfrom across the border or from the fish processing plants,"D’Silva demanded to know.
Hefurther demanded to know whether any of the authorities are keeping acheck on the unauthorized fishing joints, whether they observe socialdistancing and other lockdown norms. “The Fisheries Department hasstopped the jetties on the ground that there would be violation ofsocial distancing norms. Is anyone checking what’s going on at themakeshift and unauthorized fish markets," he asked
