Prices of many varieties of fish have gone up by over 40% due to the fishing ban on the east coast. Consumers say they buy fish despite unbelievably high prices due to the health benefits of consuming seafood. The city and the rest of the State, except a small portion of the Kanniyakumari coastline, are into the 61-day long fishing ban. The 5,900 mechanised vessels operating here usually bring in around 70% of the seven lakh tonnes of fish landing every month in the State. At present, fish supplies are met by 39,000 country craft that bring in 30% of the catch, fish from Kerala and inland fish. But this is hardly enough to meet demand, pushing up prices, said officials in the Fisheries Department. G. Murugan, a resident of Thiruvanmiyur, said he was able to buy only three kaanakeluthi (mackeral that is sold at Rs.300 a kilo at the Tamil Nadu Fisheries Development Corporation stalls) fish in place of the five that he would get during other seasons for Rs.300 at his local market. Similarly, prices of paarai, nethili and thirukkai fish too have shot up, he said. I don’t buy fish from Kerala even though it is available in plenty, especially after the formalin scare last year. I prefer locally caught fish from near the coast since I know it is fresh and is safe and don’t mind the high price, he added. Sources in the Corporation said that they usually ensured quality, quantity and correct price. This was also echoed by regular customer S. Selvakumari from T. Nagar. I buy fish when everyone in the family is at home. Seer fish (vanjaram) is a favourite but now the rate has gone up by Rs.300-400 a kilo. I usually buy at the TNFDC stall at Teynampet because I know it is a government outlet and the quality is good, she said. When asked why she went for fish despite the high price, she said it was good for the health and better than other non-veg items. Meanwhile, boat owners are waiting for fishing ban to be lifted. With boats sitting idle at fishing harbours, many of the labourers have either gone home or to other harbours in the western coast to take up odd jobs.
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