<span style="color: #222222;">The 61-day fishing ban in Puducherry along with Tamil Nadu and adjoining states has brought a lot of hardships for fishermen and the consumers. The shortage of fish in the market has led to a hike in its price.<br />''<br />''The idea behind the ban is to ensure breeding time for the fish. The ban began on 15th of this month. Fishing through bigger trawlers is banned. However, catamarans and country boats are allowed.<br />''<br />''Even though the ban period is welcomed by the fishermen, the local fishermen say that they are left jobless during this period. The fishermen unanimously felt that the relief amount of around 5,000 rupees given during this lean period is not enough. Ban period is mostly used to get their fishing nets repaired and fishing boats serviced.<br />''<br />''The only supply to the market is through local catamarans or small fiberglass boats, where the fishermen leave for the sea early in the morning and return back in four to five hours with their catch. The fishermen could not venture deep into the sea, as they needed to return back to sell their catch in the morning itself.<br />''<br />''Fishermen belonging to the local fishing hamlet in Puducherry, Veerampattinam, while talking to AIR correspondent, say that, even though there was no ban on small boats, the local community has self-imposed a ban for catamarans for seven to ten days. However, when they resumed fishing for the past few days, they could not meet the end as there weren't enough fish in the sea. Many of them took boats for hire and they could not meet the input costs involved.<br />''<br />''They also have scores of other issues that require the government's intervention. The local fishermen complain about fishing through Purse seine nets as a major threat to their livelihood.<br />''<br />''They say that the purse seine net fishing, literally robs the entire fishery wealth in the locality and it needs to be banned. Even though this technique is banned in Tamil Nadu, in Puducherry, some fishing hamlets indulge in the activity.</span><br />