Owners of big fishing vessel, who could not commence activities till September 1 as most of their workers had returned to their respective states, are now hoping to begin the season. However, with a lot of the labour force yet to return to Goa, fishing activities are not likely to kick-start all at once, they said. We had decided that bigger boats would start from September 1. However, many of our workers have not yet arrived, said president of All Goa Fishermen’s Association Harshad Dhond. The crew usually returned August onwards. But this year due to transport-related issues many could not come back. Individual boat owners therefore resolved to send buses to bring back their workers. Since most of the crew members are from Jharkhand, sending a bus there takes three-and-a-half days each way. Besides the fuel cost, the boat owners are also paying for the food and Covid-19 test at the state border. The Goa government will have to help us since we have taken the responsibility of bringing the crew back to the state, president of Cutbona Boat Owners Association, Savio D’Silva, said. Those who can afford to send buses to pick up migrant labour can start fishing activities. Purse seine fishing will therefore start gradually and won’t take off in a full-fledged manner. Right now, Goa’s fisheries sector is very unpredictable, Dhond said. He has sent a bus at the cost of Rs 2.5 lakh on Wednesday and is expecting it to be back by Wednesday. While mechanised fishermen intended to start the season earlier, unfavourable weather conditions forced them to postpone the fishing activities to the last week of August. Traditional fishermen were also affected due to the rough seas that prevailed through most of August. Compared to these vessels, purse seine boats require a greater manpower of 20-25 crew members and stay out at sea for longer durations.