State Minister of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Development Dilip Wedaarachchi emphasized that a desirable change need to be taken place in laws and attitudes regarding the fisheries industry in order to uplift the livelihoods of the fisherman and fisheries industry. The State Minister made these remarks recently at a meeting in Dickwella, Matara held to present a report of suggestions and recommendations regarding the issuance of permits to use purse seine nets for fishing. The report was presented to the State Minister at the annual conference of the all island national federation of fishery associations. In a discussion held in December last year, a committee was appointed to formulate the suggestions and proposals under the chairmanship of State Minister and with the participation of fishery associations, officers and fishers. The report, which was the final result of multiple sessions of discussions, signifies that use of purse seine nets is required to ensure the availability of fish to the majority of the community at an affordable price The committee therefore, has proposed that the permits shall be issued subject to formally prescribed regulations in order to secure the fisherman and the fishing industry. A research conducted by National Aquatic Resources Research and Development Agency (NARA) has found that the total fish population of Sri Lankan waters is decreasing in an alarming rate and the decline has been attributed to the use of purse seines. Following the findings, the Minister of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Development and the representatives from Fishing Unions have held a discussion last year and reached the decision to ban the purse seine nets. The committee has therefore recommended several measures for using the purse seine nets while limiting the depletion of fish resources in the waters around the island. The Committee has suggested to reduce the annual fee of a permit from Rs. 20 000 to Rs. 5000 and reduce the length of a purse seine to 300 m, and the mesh size should be 1? inches. The height of the seine should not be more than 50 m. The Committee also suggested to define the term “species similar to Yellow fin Tuna”, issue new regulations/ gazette/circular amending the Fisheries and Aquatic Resource Act No 2 of 1996 in which the authorized officer for the implementation is the Director General. It requested to give permits to 1000 multiday vessels under the first phase in 2017 with future measures to be taken in view of their performance and reactions and take legal action against the vessels that harvest more than 50kg of Tuna (less than 3kg weight) and Tuna( less than1kg). This report of proposals will be presented to the Minister of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Development by the State Minister.