Rameswaram fishermen endure limited fishing ground, risky waters, poor price fixed by cartel

Rameswaram fishermen struggle with low prawn prices due to private companies forming a cartel, pushing them into debt.

Fishermen in Rameswaram are a worried lot as the price of prawns and other crustaceans have not picked up as expected. Prawns, crabs and mussels from this region are considered a delicacy and sought after by lovers of seafood. But of late, these fishermen are facing a piquant situation.

At the end of the 60-day ban period, on June 15, the first group of fishermen brought with them tonnes of succulent prawns, and they were sold for ₹250 a kg. Now, almost three weeks have gone, but the price of prawns has shown only a marginal increase - just around ₹270. Before the ban period, the price was hovering near ₹400 mark.

The fishermen blame the private players for the poor prices. There are four major private companies in the Rameswaram island and they buy these catches in bulk. Some of the catch reaches the domestic market while the bulk goes for export. “They have formed a cartel to keep the price low,” says Sahayam, a fishermen leader.

Once the catch reaches their freezer units, the prawns are segregated, cleaned and frozen. These companies wait for high prices in the international market and at the opportune time ship them for a huge profit. Their huge chilling plants can keep the stock for even more than six months. “We have no such facilities to stock the catch,” Mr. Sahayam rues.

With about 700 boats going for fishing, the quantity of prawns brought ashore is enormous. According to fisheries officials, even after what is bought by the private players, and after what is taken by the government for sale at its fish shops, there is much left. Being a perishable commodity, the problem of plenty rises. It is time the fishermen themselves regulated the number of boats going to sea, they say.

A company manager says, “We buy prawns in bulk but after segregation good quality prawns is less and much of the procurement is lost in wastage. We cannot pay them more as we will incur loss.”

But, Jesu Raja, another fishermen leader, says if the quality is poor, how were they able to quote a good price before the ban period. Of course there are more boats but the fishing ground is limited because of the Sri Lanka trespass issue.