FIRs against 41 fishermen for violating monsoon ban

41 FIRs have been filed against owners of fishing boats in Maharashtra for violating the annual ban on deep sea fishing during the monsoon season.

Mumbai: Since June 1 of this year, a total of 41 First information reports (FIRs) have been filed against owners of fishing boats in Maharashtra, for violating the annual ban on deep sea fishing during monsoon season. Many of these boats were found to be operating from the Karanja fishing harbour in Uran, which was raided by the fisheries department on June 27 to crack down on such operations.

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On June 27 alone, 12 violators from Karanja were booked under Sections 186 (obstructing public servant in the discharge of public functions), 188 (Disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant), 141 (Unlawful assembly), 143 (Punishment of unlawful assembly), 504 (Intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace), and 506 (Punishment for criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code.

A copy of the FIR lodged on June 27, at the request of the fisheries department, also directs action against the owners of 72 motor vehicles who were apprehended for transporting illegally caught seafood. Details of these vehicles were recorded by the fisheries department during a panchnama.

A few other boats against whom FIRs were filed came from Revas, Dighode, Bodni, and Varedi villages in Raigad, and one boat from Mahul in Mumbai. However, fisheries department officials claimed that they had all been operating from the Karanja port during the monsoon period.

On July 14, the fisheries department also apprehended two trawlers at Mumbai’s Sassoon Dock after being alerted by local fisherfolks, though FIRs against the boat owners are yet to be filed.

Confirming these developments, a senior official with the fisheries department in Mumbai said, “Criminal prosecution has been initiated by us against seven of these 41 boat owners. Fisheries minister Sudhir Mungantiwar held a meeting on June 28, a day after the raid in Karanja, and told us to double down on such activities. As per the Maharashtra Marine Fishing Regulation Act, 1981, no fishing can happen during the monsoon period to allow for fish breeding and replenishment of stocks.”

“In almost all instances where FIRs have been filed, the boats had painted over their identification markers, such as the name of the boat, the boat license number, and the fishing license number. We have noticed that this has become a common practice during the monsoons to evade identification. This poses a security risk and requires the police and Coast Guard’s vigilance as well,” the fisheries department official said.