News
Plenty of fish in the sea, fishermen despair
Story and pix by Hiran Priyankara Jayasinghe, Augustin Fernando, and N.Parameshwaran
The excessive rainfall this week and the risk of floods are causing major hardships for the fishermen in the Chilaw area. They risk their lives to go
Going cheap: The price of Salaya, Hurulla and Kumbalawa has dropped by Rs.150
out to sea and fish but there is no proper market for their catch.
The monsoonal rains and vendors from other parts of the country coming to sell their catch in Chilaw have brought down the price of fish drastically.
Supply and demand: There is plenty of fish for sale in Chilaw, but severe weather is keeping customers away
As of last Friday, November 14, the price of Salaya, Hurulla and Kumbalawa dropped by Rs.150 to Rs. 450 rupees per kilo.
The severe weather conditions have kept customers away as well, adding to the problem.
Meanwhile in areas such as the Puttalam and Batticaloa, it was reported that the fishermen had hauled in a large number of fish particularly in the last few days.
The reason for this is because of the monsoonal season, sea currents and upwelling, conservation biologist Mr. Ranil Nanayakara said.
Explaining further he added, “Upwelling is an oceanographic phenomenon that involves wind-driven motion of dense, cooler, and usually nutrient-rich water towards the ocean surface, replacing the warmer, usually nutrient-depleted surface water. This drives several organisms that live underwater to the surface.”
Puttalam lagoon
Excess supply: Fishermen haul in large numbers as the monsoon, sea currents and upwelling create ideal fishing conditions in Puttalam