The retail price of most varieties of marine fish in Mumbai has doubled in the last five to eight years. For that matter, the number of varieties has also dwindled. The main reason is pollution due to waste discharge into the sea and a loss of mangroves, which are breeding grounds for fish and other marine species. Since only the island city has specialised docks (Sassoon and Ferry Wharf) where big mechanised boats can anchor, it has meant that fishing activity launched from the suburbs and other areas in the metropolitan region and nearby places is restricted to much smaller boats, which are limited in the amount of catch they can get. According to hotelier Shashikant Shetty , just five years ago, the cost of surmai was Rs 80-110 per kg, which today is Rs 200-220. “Similar is the case with pomfret and Bombay Duck,” he said. The problem and the reasons are specific to the Mumbai region. The broad trend for the state is that catch has been reducing because of overfishing. TOI reported in November how Maharashtra’s marine catch had come down by 23% in just one year. The presence of docks only in the island city has meant that Ferry Wharf and Sassoon Docks (along with low contributions from Worli, Mahim and Cuffe Parade) contribute to 67% of MMR’s marine catch (see graphic). Despite this, the size of Mumbai’s (island city and suburbs) fishing activity at Rs 2,000 crore is Rs 5,00 crore less than Thane’s. But this is because the catch of fishing centres in Thane includes an abundance of costly varieties like pomfret and lobster. In another trend, though catch from the island city’s fishing centres is more, it’s the suburbs that score on variety. For example, Versova may not be getting relatively big catch, but yields greater variety. This is because of a relatively healthy presence of mangroves, which are breeding grounds for marine species. Mangroves are almost non-existent along the coastline of the island city . Also, the mechanised boats from here that fish in the high seas come across fixed sets of shoals, which comprise fish found in particular marine locations, unlike the large number of varieties that make coastal waters their habitat.