Come monsoon, and the mechanised trawlers in Goa remain off-water, thanks to a High Court directive which banned fishing by big boats this time of the year.

But hundreds of fishermen, who have canoes - with less than 10 horsepower engines venture out into the sea in the wee hours every day.

Some 28,000 fishermen, natives of 105-km Goa coastline, look forward to the ban period (June 15 to July 31), because during the rest of the year, trawlers do not leave much catch for them. And during the rains, relatively less fish reach the markets, so prices are high.

The High Court imposed the ban on fishing by mechanised trawlers during the monsoon because this is the breeding season for fish.

All the six jetties in the state are closed and guarded by the authorities to ensure that the ban is not breached.

Mr Joaquim Fernandes, 59, who heads the association of traditional fishermen, `Goenchya Ramponkarancho Ekvott’, said traditionally the whole family is involved in fishing. The men go out into the sea, women sell the catch.

Living in the Velsao village, 50 km from the capital city, Fernandes comes from a traditional fishermen family. Many fishermen have now bought trawlers of their own, he says. Still, there are thousands of others who rely on canoes. In Velsao alone, there are 900 such fishermen.

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