The fishermen community has issued a call to control juvenile fishing of sharks and manta rays. Speaking at a stakeholders’ meet of fishermen, traders, exporters and scientists organized by Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI) in Kochi, the long-line fishermen expressed their willingness to impose a strict ban on juvenile fishing to ensure sustainability of fish population. The meet highlighted the fact that government agencies and scientific community should work together to save juvenile sharks and manta rays.The meet was organized by CMFRI’s demersal fisheries division as part of preparing the non-detriment finding (NDF) document that is essential for the trading of species listed in the Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). Five sharks and two manta rays species had been listed in the Appendix II of the CITES. The stakeholders’ meet was conducted to incorporate the suggestions of long-line fishermen, traders and exporters for compilation of NDF, said director Dr A Gopalakrishnan. “The NDF document is prepared by a scientific authority considering population status, distribution, population trend, harvest, trade information, biological and ecological factors of fishes,” he said, adding that the catch of sharks and manta rays decreased in 2015. The catch of manta rays dropped from 40 tonnes in 2012 to five in 2015. “We are ready to stop juvenile fishing. Authorities concerned should conduct campaigns to make fishermen aware of the importance of the ban. We will extend all support to CMFRI and the government in this regard,” said Irshad K A, a marine fin exporter based in Kochi.
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