Veraval fish industry in Gujarat struggling to survive amid fuel price rise

By Dhiraj Beniwal
Gir Somnath (Gujarat) [India], May 4 : The rise in fuel prices has become a major challenge for the marine fishermen of Gujarat's Veraval, one of the biggest fish exporting hubs in India.
The fishermen pointed out that they are facing competition from the Srilankan and Pakistani fishermen as they get fuel at cheap prices. Also, the government-sponsored aquaculture has slowly started to dominate major fish export in India, they said.
Veraval is famous for its fish export business, manufacture of fishing nets, fishing boats and cargo ships which have all been affected by the rise in fuel prices.
"Marine fishermen are facing a crisis of survival due to the increase in price of diesel for last some years. It has made the survival very difficult. We are not getting our investment return," Chandrakant Malam, a marine fisherman and boat owner said.
"In Pakistan and Srilanka fishermen get diesel at lower prices than us. Therefore they are giving us tough competition as here diesel prices have risen after the coronavirus pandemic hit the country. We should also get the diesel at least at the same price, if not cheaper to survive in the business," Malam said.
Malam said that the marine fishing business is export-based. "Out of total fishing, 90 per cent is exported. However, the revenue is decreasing as expenses are rising and diesel is one of the main components of fishing operations. We have to purchase at least Rs 3-4 lakh worth of diesel for sailing on the sea for 2 to 4 weeks," he said.
It costs around 70 lakhs to get a new fishing boat and make it operational. It has a life of 8-10 years but people engaged in fishing are not getting their return on investment, Malma said.
Earlier, 300-400 fishing boats were being constructed, now this has been decreased drastically. New investment is not pumped into the business. About 69-70,000 people from Veraval are directly involved in the fishing business. Most of them are under losses and facing crisis, he said.
Pointing out the operational costs that are affecting the fishing industry in Veraval, Malam said there are 4-5,000 big fishing boats and about 1000 small fishing boats in Veraval.
"On each boat, 8-9 people and a captain will be there. It costs around Rs 2 lakh per month and these people get their salaries and wages in advance for 8 months. This arrangement has been going on for the last several years. It costs a businessman around Rs 15 lakh. It has become very difficult for us as the revenue is decreasing," Malam said
Fishing export business turnover is Rs 7-10,000 crores. The major part is exported to China and the rest to other countries.
He said that aquaculture is being supported by the government and is booming.
"Therefore the export is as it was earlier in the paper. The government should also think about the marine fishermen of Veraval," Malam said.
Veraval which is also famous for the manufacture of cargo ships, is facing a crisis in that sector. The makers in the region said that it takes at least 4 years to construct a cargo ship, called Vahan in the local language. It has a life of 10 years and can carry around 2500 tonnes of goods.
"The boats are used for export and cargo. 2,000 tonnes of goods can be loaded in one ship. Three types of wood are used to build the ship. One of them is imported from Malaysia. The cost of constructing one ship is around Rs 9 to 10 crores. 30-40 workers take around 3-4 years to complete one ship. One ship can serve for 25 years," Sikander Qureshi, incharge of the woodwork of shipmaking in Veraval said.
Net making is another sector Veraval that has been affected by the fuel price rise leading to a crisis.
Premji Pal, a net maker said that a fish net costs around Rs 35 to 55,000 and can carry 10 to 12 tonnes fishes in one catch. "It gets repaired after every season which lasts for 8 months starting from August," Premji Pal added.