Marine Fishing in the Sundarbans

The Sundarbans of West Bengal in India is a tangled region of estuaries, rivers, creeks and canals, enclosing a vast number of islands along a long coastline. In such region, marine fishing is the obvious choice to a large number of inhabitants for their livelihood. There is a good scope for development of marine fishing, as the coastal area is potentially rich due to mangrove ecosystem. By tradition fish is an important part of diet of the population of West Bengal. Inland fisheries alone cannot cater to the whole needs. Marine fishing can bridge the gap between the demand for and supply of fish. For the development of marine fishing, State and Central Governments have been taking various schemes and measures. But, all of these are not in conformity with the needs as perceived by the marine fishermen. In this book, authors have explored the perceptions of the marine fishermen of the Sundarbans over the priorities of the problems related with their occupation, and tried to find their solutions. This book may be useful for decision makers planning for the development of marine fishing and fishermen, and also for researchers and academicians working in similar fields.