Fishers welcome govt’s new auction system with open arms

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The new fish auction introduced by the government to avoid crowded open auction at landing centres on April 4 has been received with open arms by the fishers as it helped them get fair price for the catch without exploitation by middlemen. Under the new system, Kerala State Cooperative Federation for Fisheries Development Ltd. (Matsyafed) would procure the fish and distribute it to fish sellers.

The major attraction of the system is that the price for each fish is fixed by the harbour management society headed by the district collector by taking the average price over the week. The price would remain the same irrespective of the availability of fish. On the first day, the fishermen received `170 for a kilogram of sardine and `260 for a kilo of mackerel. The fishermen are happy about the system as they need not worry about the price fluctuations based on the demand. “The price of the catch used to plummet when more boats arrive with the same catch. There is a lot of transparency in weighing as well,” said general secretary of Kerala Swatantra Matsyathozhilali Federation Jackson Pollayil.

All the 222 fishing villages in the state gave lukewarm response when the ban was first lifted as they were concerned about getting good price. But positive reports of the new system has encouraged more fishermen to be back in action, said Jackson. Fishermen in Thiruvananthapuram and Kollam were able to catch small tunas while those in Alappuzha and Ernakulam got sardines.  

The sector is stifled by middlemen who fix the price of the fish much to the disadvantage of fishermen. There are many unhealthy practices at landing centres, said an officer of Matsyafed.The government is also planning to introduce a mobile application for buyers to make the bid before the boat reaches the coast.