With the onset of monsoons the availability of fresh fish has declined in the markets. Check reveals that, the variety of fresh fish available in the markets are less and also prices of the fresh fish available are high and so several people go in for the dry fish. It increases demand of the dry fish during the monsoon in the state of Goa and in the markets here there is quite good demand for the dried mackerels and golmo’ dried tiny prawns which are favourite of many in the state. The demand for the dry fish begins at the end of the summer when the availability of fresh fish decreases. Purchases of dry fish start picking up in the village markets first as several residents stock up on dry fish for the monsoon season. There is as there is less availability of fish during the rains and mostly fresh water fish are available during this time of the year, said a dry fish vendor. The price of the dry fish depends on the variety, quality, size and the demand for it in the market. Four to five big sizeed dry mackerels are priced at around Rs 100, while around seven to eight medium sized mackerels are priced at Rs 100 and one can get around 10 small sized mackerels for Rs 100, however the prices vary. The prawns and other small dry fish are sold using the traditional measuring system and a traditional measure called sher’ is generally used to measure small dry fish. A sher’ of prawns is sold at around Rs 150 while the Golmo’ is priced at around Rs 40 per sher.’ However the prices vary according to the markets and sometimes also from vendor to vendor. In the state of Goa traditionally drying of fish is done in open sun and it takes few days for drying of the fish. During the summer season the fish are dried and kept for the monsoon when hardly any fish is available from the sea as there is fishing ban and also due to heavy rains it is dangerous to go into the sea. In the state some two decades ago plenty of fish were available and so whatever fresh fish which used to remain after selling used to be kept for drying and mostly during the monsoon people used to buy the dry fish as during the rainy season hardly any fresh fish used to be available in the markets and especially dry mackerels were in demand. Fish is part of our diet. We need to eat it at least three days a week. But during the monsoon season hardly any fish is available so we stock up on dry fish and keep for the monsoon season. My family loves dry fish especially dried mackerels and dried prawns and we like the mouth watering kismur which is prepared from dried prawns with dry mackerel curry and rice. The dry fish stocked for the monsoon is of immense use as hardly any fresh fish is available in the markets and one does not feel like going to shop when there is heavy rains, said a local woman, Lata P. The quantity of dry fish available in the state is less and to meet the local demand it is also brought from places like Karwar and Malwan. It may be noted that earlier, plenty of fish were available in the state and so whatever fresh fish remained after selling used to be kept for drying and mostly during the monsoon people used to buy the dry fish. However now fresh mackerals have so much demand that they get sold instantly and so there is less fish available for drying, according to the information available from the sources. A local vendor from a state market said, In the state of Goa there is good demand for fresh fish and so hardly fish is available for drying in the state. Because demand for dry fish is always more than the supply, several truckloads of it arrive from other states, especially Karwar and Malwan which are big dry fish depots have variety of dry fish available, said a vendor. The vendor also went on to say that there is less fish available for drying in the state of Goa and space is also a constraint. Most of the beaches where the traditionally fishermen used to dry the fish are crowded with tourists and shacks and so there is hardly any space is available for drying on the beach area. Further, dry fish coming from outside is cheaper then what is available locally. The consumption of dry fish is less in urban areas compared to village areas and hardly few people go for dry fish in the urban areas. A urban local said that in the urban areas people hardly buy the dry fish as the fresh fish is available throughout the year. In village homes dry fish is fried on the traditional chulas whereas urban areas or for that matter in the concrete houses in cities residents lack chulas. Further frying of dry fish gives intense smell and this also keeps urban people from consuming dry fish and so the urban people hardly go in for the dry fish. The installation of solar fish drier on the beaches could benefit the fishermen in the state as traditionally fish drying in the state is done in open sun mainly on the beach areas and since Goa being a tourist destination the beaches remain crowded in the summer season when the fish are dried and it takes few days for drying of the fish. Drying of the fish by using solar fish drier consumes less time and the solar drier requires less space and also it protects the fish from the dust. The solar fish drier requires one time investment and since solar energy is free there is hardly any running cost and the maintenance cost is also low, according to the information available from the sources.