a. MULLETS:

After the monsoon the fry of all species of mullets enter the lagoon in enormous numbers, but the survival rate of the fry is very low. The juveniles use the lagoon as nursery, feeding ground and growth. They migrate back to sea for breeding purposes after attaining a certain size and stage of maturity (K.V. Rao, 1984).

b. PRAWNS:

Shrimps are represented mostly by the white shrimp, Penaeus indicus, which accounted for about 30% of the total landings 1980-81 (U.K. Srivastava, 1985). Other species are P.monodon, P.semisulcatus, M.monoceros and M.dobsoni.

The white shrimp seems to be more tolerant to fluctuations in salinity than the other Penaeidae species in the lake (Krishna.pers. comm., 1992). It is fast growing and because of its tolerance, very suitable for culture purposes. Hyper saline conditions (over 40 ppt), low content is dissolved oxygen (bellow 2ppm) and wide fluctuations of temperature strongly affect the growth and the mortality rate (P. Krishna etal. 1985) V.Rao (1972) observed that salinity below 5.6 ppt caused inactivity among post-larvae and at 0.9 ppt they died.

The tiger shrimp (P. monodo) is the largest of the marine shrimps growing to a maximum length of 320 mm. In India it occurs in brackish waters, estuaries and in inshore and deeper waters of the east and west coasts, but it is less abundant than P.indicus (Rao, 1984)

c. GREEN CRAB:

Green Crab (Scylla serrata) fishing continues throughout we year but reaches its peak during November – January. This crab is preferred to other species of crabs because of its meat quality, its large size and its ability to stay alive out of water for a few days. According to Mr. A.J. Thomas(1959) intensive fishing took place during the breeding season and large quantities of pregnant females were sold in the market. He recommended restricting fishing season to save the females, and investigating the possibility of starting large scale crab farming.

d. CLAM:

Clam fishing begins in January or February and continues until October or November, The fishing method, mainly carried out by women, is hand-picking. The clam meat are sold to poor people in nearby villages and the shells are sold to the shell industry for construction purposes. The annual landings of M. casta was highest in 1980 (309.7 tonnes) and decreased in 1981 (168.2 tonnes) and 1982 (85.9 tonnes).

The dramatic decrease in 1982 is a result of the fact that the shell industry, which purchased the clam shells, shifted to Sullurpet in Nellore district, Andhra Pradesh (Thangavelu and Sanjeevaraj 1985)

The total population around Pulicat Lake is about 28,000 spread over 50 kuppams (settlements). Two third of the settlements are on the Tamilnadu side, accounting for over 15000 of the total population . It is comprised predominantly of fishermen who belong to the traditional marine fishing caste called Pattanavan. The others include Harijans who are primarily involved in the lake fishing and the Tribals who have moved into the lake fishing sector from the agricultural sector. It is estimated that a total of 12,370 fishermen live on fulltime fishery in the lake (6000 in Andhra Pradehs and 6370 in Tamilnadu).

The three most important sectors depending infishing are:

a) The Pulicat area which includes the three villages Christian Kuppam, Andi Kuppam and Kota Kuppam with about 1670 full time fishermen and a total of about 3500 people in the villages. The fishermen from the eastern side of the lake were mainly fishing in the sea.

b) The Arambakkam area with the important fishing villages Arambakkam, Battaikuppam, Perivedu and Methipalayam with a population of 6000, constituting 900 families with 1700 active fishermen.

c) The Sunnanbukulam area comprising 9 villages with about 15000 in fishing and 9000 active fishermen fully dependent on the fisheries of the lake (U.K. Sriuvastava 1985).

Because of the extreme reduction of the lake in the northern part of the lake (segment 1) during post monsoon, there are only part-time fishermen in this area.

The boats used are ordinary country crafts called ‘nattupadagu’. The length of this plank built boat ranged from 6-8 metres with a capacity of about 2 tonnes. A total of 575 boats operated in Pulicat lake in 1985. Out of this 200 boats belonged to the Pulicat area, 175 boats to Arambakkam area and 215 to Sunnambukkalam (U.K. Srivastava, 1985)

A lot of fishing gears are used in Pulicat Lake, Researchers have listed nine types of fishing gear, cast-nets, gill-nets, drag-nets, shore-seine, bag-nets, stake-nets, hook and line, vallikodi (lure fishing) and adappu (impoundment). The most effective of these gears are the Sutru valai and the Padi valai.

Sutru valai comprises two kinds of gear called tadukku (a wall shaped nylon gear) and siru valai (bag net). The operation is done at night during low tide when shrimps migrate to sea. The tadukku functions as a barricade in the path of the mobile prawns and they consequently get caught in the siru valai. The operations of suthu valai are form shore to shore, virtually blocking the movement of prawns and thereby affecting the catch of downstream fishermen.

Padi valai is essentially a nylon drag-net almost in the shapes of a

shore-seine, mainly used for catching mullets and other species during

the neutral phases of the tide. It is mainly used in fishing grounds

which have gradual slopes and sandy bottoms. The net has two wings,

each about 6 m broad, and a deep bag about 10 m long and 12 m broad. The

entire unit is about 800-1000 m in length

One of the most severe threats to sustainable fisheries, according to interviews with local experts, seems to be over fishing. One way to estimate fish production in a water body is to investigate the primary production. When potential production is compared with the actual harvest it is possible to assess if the pressure on the biological resources is too high. The primary production is the assimilation by plants producing the base for all aquatic life. The linkage between primary production and fish-yield is not so simple in a tropical water body like Pulicat Lake.

One reason is, that the lion-part of the aduatic life in a brackish-water lagoon consists of juveniles and fingerlings that are not harvested.

The other reason is the multi-species interactions in a tropical brackish-water environment, which results in more complex and longer food webs. The consumption within a complex marine ecosystem with many tophic levels is extremely high, with the result that relatively small catches can be available to fishermen in spite of a high primary production. It is therefore difficult to accurately assess the total production of fishes and shrimps available in Pulicate Lake. The only way is to gauge the quantity and types from the fish landings every year and compare this to the total yield in other years.

a. PADDU SYSTEM:

In the highly productive Southern sector of Pulicat Lagoon, closer to Ennore and 5 kilometres from the estuary and bar (where the sea water and Lagoon water meet submerge together) the lagoon is being controlled by fishermen of three main Pulicat Lagoon villages namely Kottai Kuppam, Chuistain kuppam and Audi Kuppam. The system is which a part of the lagoon is controlled and earmarked for exclusive fishing of three villages is called Paadu system. The system was in practice from time immorial. The Paadu system as practiced in Pulicat Lagoon is also under practice in Srilanka and other coasts of Tamilnadu.

Paadu can be defined as traditional system of getting entitlements to eligible members of a particular community for undertaking specified fishing activity in certain designated areas. The fishing grounds fall within a radius of five kilometers from the mouth of the lake with a salinity well maintained without much drying even drying low tides.

This system according to traditional fishermen is caste specific. Among the traditional fisherfolk there are different classes and they are more or less designated as castes. The "PATTANAVAN" (one who owns the village or one who founded the village) is respected as the traditional leader and the family becomes the ruling class or caste. The power of ruling is only in terms of traditional systems protected, maintained and developed. The Indian society which predominantly is Hindu gives prominence to castism and many a time it leads to caste hegemony and caste rigidity. Once a particular caste establishes it superiority over other castes, the values penetrate deeper into caste hierarcy in socio-economic aspects.

But in this particular case of Paadu, the designated caste of fishermen called "Pattinathar" are supposed to protect the goal mouth of the lake of from and other fishing community since it is the best fishing ground and it is only through this passage fish and prawns cross from ocean to lagoon and lagoon to ocean. The marine fisherfolk also live close to lagoons are always greedy and will throw their net at the "Bar" whenever there is a lean season in the sea.

There are three paadu systems in the lagoon namely (a) Vadakku Paadu which is in a canal shaped area of about 1.25 sq. kilometres. It is the most productive and therefore the most intensely fishing ground. (b) Moonthuri Paadu is about 2.50 sq. kilometres and is not as productive and lucrative like the Vadakku Paadu. © Odai Paadu is 0.45 to 2 kilometres and is the best productive paadu. It is almost abandoned by the paadu fishermen.

b. INTER-VILLAGE CONFLICTS

The paadu system as practised in Pulicat Lake is unique because of its traditional, caste-based nature and the control it has on the access rights to the high productive areas. During many hundreds of years the paadu fishing rights have had legitimacy among the lake fishermen but they don’t have any hold over most of the eastern fishermen.

The pressure on the system from within is enormous and arises mainly from shrinking fishing space, decimation of resource and demographic pressure. The internal fragility of the paadu system is worsened by outside pressure arising from claims on the paadu system is worsened by outside pressure arising from claims on the paadu grounds from the marine-side villages. These fishermen do not honour the paadu rights and there have been periodic conflicts over the paadu water since the 1930s when the paadu fishermen had to concede fishing rights in a smaller area of Munthurai Paadu to those of Gunan kuppam and Lighthouse colony.

VI. WHY PAADU SYSTEM HAS TO MAINTAINED?

(COMPARISON AND CONTRAST BETWEEN MARINE AND LAGOON FISHERFOLK)

(a) The marine fishermen are those who would use different gears and crafts to catch all sorts of fish in the sea, do not care about conservation. Even those who have been using small katamarams (two wooden logs tied together) have abandoned their traditional crafts and launch out for mechanized fishing in the sea. Their standard of living is very high and the catch is quite regular either by day or night through out the year. The average daily income of a marine fisherman is Rs.400/- (US$ 10.00) to Rs.800/- (US$ 20.00). They usually do not spend day and night in the sea catching fish. Some go out in the day and some in the night. Those who work in the trawlers go beyond E.E.Z. and will stay for many days and months involving in deep sea fishing. They are more aggressive and always consider themselves as superior class or caste. (The marine fishermen never allow their women folk to go closer to the sea and touch their tools for fishing).

(b) The Lagoon fisherfolk always live below the poverty line with a daily income of Rs.100 to Rs.200 only. There are sixty days of "Thalavu" when they will refrain from fishing. They catch fish only for 200 days a year and that too not abundantly. They use traditional country boats which are heavy and never use outboard motors for fishing. They go with their families and stay in small islands around the lagoon for more than a week. They have to enter the water and lay the nets with bamboos as polls and wait for the baits for hours. They are often bitten by lagoon snakes and scorpians. The lagoon fisherfolk have to give their daily cutches to a big trader whose agents are always watching their catch and grab them immediately so as to clear the loan borrowed during the lay off period. Each fisherman is indebted and is like a bonded labourer. They have to leave their long traditional country crafts in a jetty and carry their tools back to their villages which are located atleast one to two kilometers away from the lagoon. On the whole the lake fisherfolk are poor, marginalized and are victims of money lenders and fish traders.

It is specifically for these reasons that "the Paadu system" has to be sustained. Though Paadu system affects only thirty five percent of the lagoon fisherfolk, yet it is by enforcing this system of entitlement, they can stop the marine fisherfolk entering the lagoon during lean seasons and greedily grab all the fish in the lake. If there is no paadu system, the lagoon fisherman will have no control over the lake. They cannot stop the marine fisherfolk from entering the lake.

The State Government, though knows the value of the "Paadu System", never makes any serious attempt either to protect or safeguard the interest of the lagoon fisherfolk who make use of the Paadu system. Instead of enabling the Paadu fishermen to establish some norms and control through the traditional fisher people councils, the Government tries to dump displaced lagoon as well as marine fisherfolk into the productive areas of Paadu to provide them mental and material satisfaction. Though displaced and uprooted from original settlements, these fishermen could reap rich harvest in fishing within Paadu areas and compensate their losses- as though material benefits alone are said to be the priority of losses as far as the Government is concerned. Fisher people properties including land, houses, crafts and gears and sometimes, the kith and kin have to be taken away and forced to leave allowing the empty spaces of land for the use of the Government projects.

One such was the Federal Governments’ "Sriharikotta Rocket space Landing Station" right across a small natural island in the midst of Pulicat Lagoon, displacing three lagoon fishing villages with one thousand two hundred fisherfolk household and also building a road with a bridge right across the lagoon, completely destroying the natural eco system of the lagoon and descertified the northern part of the lagoon by limiting the lagoon not extend further beyond the road and the bridge, thereby destroying fish and birds who have had sanctuaries of living for centuries.

In the same manner, in the South of Chennai city, about seventy five kilometer away, two villages of marine fisherfolk have been displaced and forced to live between lagoon and the sea right close to the Paadu area in Order to erect a huge Nuclear Power plant in Kalpakkam.

Once the displaced fisherfolk try to make a living in the forced settlements, their eyes always look out for rich fishing grounds and when approached the Government grants them special Fishing Rights both in the sea as well as in the lagoon because of their displacement.

In 1990 such special fishing rights were granted to five new settlement villages and using these legal rights as entry points, the new fisherfolk enjoy fishing, both in the sea and lagoon, there by creating increasing tensions, conflicts and inter village rivalry between lagoon Paadu fisherfolk and themselves.

This clearly indicates the attitude of the officials of the Government, especially those in the Department of Fisheries, who have no respect for breaking down traditional peoples legal rights of fishing no matter how precious and sacred they are to poor fisherfolk in the lagoon. Fisherfolk who are already marginalized and vicitimsed due to Governments visionless planning against environment have no power to raise their voices in unison against such anti people forces at work.

(a) As more and more space is being reduced for Paadu fishing for the Paadu fisherfolk of three major villages, the "Patinathars" the paadu caste of fishermen tend to become angry and often use violence against the new settlers when they keep on fishing a tirelessly without limits.

(b) From 1985 to 2000, there were twelve fisherfolk who have been killed and a large member of them beaten and plundered of their resources. This applies to both Paadu fisherfolk and settlers.

© Having seen this threat as imment and increases during busy fishing seasons, (October to December) the Paadu fisherfolk started calling for General fisherfolk leaders councils in Pulicat lagoon to have their solidarity and support to overcome crisis situations and ease out tensions and at the same time threaten the new settlers and other marine fisherfolk of dire consequences if they disobey the rules and regulations laid by the Traditional Fisherfolk Leaders Councils.

(d) Unfortunately there are twenty three lagoon fishing villages around the lake and there are Tamilnadu villages and Andhra fishing villages, covering two different southern states of India. Besides all this are the new settlers with fishing rights provided by the Government with legal implications.

(e) Traditional fisherfolk because of their limited perception to, human development, community interaction and seclusion from the mainstream communities, often try to redress their grievances and vengeance by literally fighting with other village folks. The lagoon fisherfolk are divided over "Paadu" issue. Though seventy percent of the lagoon fisherfolk support Paadu system and the fisherfolk who have been benefited, the remaining thirty percent always oppose the system of paadu. They are mostly those who live in unproductive and dry areas of fishing.

(f) The mass media (Television and Radio) and the News media give wide publicity to fisherfolk conflicts creating prejudices in the minds of general public (non-fisherfolk) that by a large fisherfolk communities are backward, intolerant and uncivilized. The regular quarrels, riots and arson during seasons in Paadu areas create a general public opinion that if Paadu system is eliminated, there will be peaceful coexistence of lagoon fisherfolk.

(g) Some NGO groups and political parties who believe very much in "Socialism" consider Paadu system is creating a big gulf between the Paadu and poor fisherfolk and those who are also against caste system vehemently oppose the Paadu system for dividing the fisherfolk in the lake as privileged and non-privileged, upper caste and lower castes, rich class and poor and so on.

(h) It is in this context, COPDANET projects strengthening of

fisherfolk’s unity and bond and creating a set of principles to proclaim

"Paadu system" as sustainable, protecting the lagoon fisherfolk from

unscrupulous elements and vested interests and enabling the traditional

system to exit and publicize the importance

of it in terms of value building. COPDANET has to use Paadu as a base for experiments such as mangrove propogation, rebuilding eco-systems in Paadu areas and advocate with the Government for regular desilting at the "Bar Mouth" (Estuaries so as to allow water from both sides (sea and lagoon) flow simultaneously allowing easy flow and fish resources.