Global meet to discuss problems of fisheries
A two-day international conference, organized by Observer Research Foundation, will start in the national capital on Monday to discuss the problems of small and medium sized fisheries.
The conference, to be inaugurated by Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao, would also focus on the need for maintaining healthy diverse marine landscapes and requirement of sustainable stocks through the use of high technology.
Given India's long maritime border along with Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Myanmar, the conference assumes significance because of contentions between India and its neighbours on account of trespassing by the fishermen of the poorly demarcated maritime border.
With Pakistan, the problems are again dynamic given the frequent arrests of poor fishermen from both sides who tend to stray into each others territory or, more often, fish in areas that are regarded as disputed.
"Over harvesting in South Asia is often restricted by a poorly enforced 'ban on fishing' in certain critical periods during the year", the statement said.
The conference is being attended by prominent scholars, stake-holders and officials from India, Sri Lanka, Japan, Holland, Denmark and Australia and will look at various aspects like "Livelihood concerns and ground realities", "Managing the resources, making alternatives possible", "Problem-solving mechanisms and methods".
The session on "Livelihood concerns and ground realities" will have papers on "Problems of Palk Bay fishermen on the Indian side", "Problems of Northern and Eastern fishermen from Sri Lanka" and "Problems faced by multi-day fishermen from Sri Lanka".
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