This study analyses the livelihoods of marine fishing communities in the Indian coastal state of Orissa using the Sustainable Livelihoods Approach (SLA). It investigates the relationships between livelihoods and coastal poverty and seeks to develop simple qualitative indicators to monitor the changes in these relationships over time. The key trends affecting the livelihoods of the poor in the coastal fishing communities in Orissa range across the whole spectrum of “assets” – i.e. the natural, physical, social, human and financial – and contribute to changes in terms of availability as well as access to the assets for the poorer stakeholders. Thus, the overall decline in availability of fish from the coastal waters is also accompanied by a declining access of the poor to the fish resources as a result of changes in fishing technology and in market supply chains. The shift in fishing methods from subsistence-based artisanal activities to sophisticated modern technologies has rendered redundant the traditional skills, knowledge and manual labour abilities of the poor, while also increasing risks and leading to a dependence upon external sources of credit. As fish are sold directly to the traders at the point of landing, fishermen no longer depend on the women to sell them, so the women find themselves marginalized. There is evidence that food insecurity is growing in the fishing villages and, coupled with the weakening of the welfare state policies, leading to increasing deprivation. Apart from the various trends, this paper examines the impact of seasonality and shocks upon the fisheries-based livelihoods and the importance and the influence of various policies, institutions and processes in addressing the fishers’ need to cope with their vulnerability context in a meaningful manner. It summarizes the various factors having an impact upon the livelihoods of the fishers and develops them into simple indicators relevant in assessing the changing patterns of poverty in fishing communities of Orissa.