Small fishermen struggle as fishing using LED lights continues unchecked in Maharashtra

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It’s early morning, around 5:30 am, and Govind Parab has ventured into the deep sea with his fishing net. After waiting for nearly two hours, he hasn’t caught a single fish. Govind doesn’t own a fishing boat; he only has a small net to catch fish, which he sells in the Ratnagiri city market.

“Nowadays, I don’t get much fish. I’ll probably have to look for some other work,” he says in desperation as he emerges from the water. Govind Parab has been fishing for over two decades, supporting his family through this sole livelihood.

Raghunath Sawant shares a similar plight. He and his colleague have a small fishing boat, but like Govind, they are unable to find any fish. “These light-using fishermen are taking away all the fish. Now we are fighting for survival,” he laments, sitting in his dilapidated boat.

‘Affordable’ fines

The use of LED lights for fishing, combined with purse seine nets, has significantly affected the Konkan sea waters in Maharashtra. Small fishermen have been protesting against this method used by larger fishing operations. When submerged, the special LED lights attract tiny phytoplankton, microscopic marine algae, which use the light as food in the absence of natural sunlight. This attracts larger marine animals, and the fishing boats capitalise on this by deploying large purse seine nets, which can be up to 2,000 m long and 250 ft deep, to capture vast quantities of fish from wide and deep areas.

“Rich fishermen are using this technique, and the government has not taken any action. The government imposes some fines on these fishermen, which they pay on the spot and continue this illegal activity. Either the government must increase the fines or implement a complete ban with severe punishment,” said MLA Nitesh Rane, speaking in the Assembly.

Fisheries Development Minister Sudhir Mungantiwar responded, “When fishermen use LED lights and purse seine nets in the sea, they conduct fishing worth ₹25-50 lakh. These fishermen can easily afford the fines imposed by law, which does not significantly impact them. Therefore, this type of fishing continues. We will attempt to introduce a new law to address this issue. A decision will be made on how 25 per cent of the fines collected can be given to traditional fishermen. A committee led by former minister Ram Naik has been formed to establish a fisheries policy. Through this committee, a more comprehensive law will be developed.”