Threats to the Sustainability of Marine Fishery Resources Along the Tamil Nadu Coast, India

Fisheries are a critical sector in India, providing employment to millions and contributing significantly to national food security. The major challenge today is not merely increasing fish production to meet rising demand but ensuring sustainability of fishery resources. This study identifies the principal threats to the sustainability of marine fishery resources along the Thoothukudi coast of Tamil Nadu. A total of 90 fishermen, selected through random sampling from Thoothukudi North and South, were interviewed using an open-ended schedule. Key threats reported were: use of small mesh size in the cod end and bottom trawling by trawlers, intensive mechanization and increasing numbers of fishing crafts, coastal pollution, use of unsuitable fishing gears, unrestricted fish catch (including juveniles), illegal trapping of fishery resources, overfishing, absence of a fishing-activity monitoring mechanism, high price of all fish species encouraging overexploitation, and lack of effective fisheries management.