Uttara Kannada district is a region of great biodiversity, from its mangroves to its many diverse freshwater life forms.
However, the rainy season is the onset of a fish famine in the Malnad region. This doesn’t mean people here stop trying to look for freshwater fish. Take the people of Andavalli near Siddapur taluk, which is 20 km from Sagar town. People here fish for freshwater species by stepping into Mavinahole, which joins the Varada river.
A great catch of freshwater fish is to be found in the waters here. All thanks to the ‘kattu’, a structure made of wooden poles that act as a sieve allowing for water with freshwater fish to flow in, while one persons sits atop the ‘kattu’ waiting to trap any fish that flows towards him.
This structure is built every year. It cannot be built by one person and is built over a period of 15 days, under the guidance of Chowdappa, one of the village elders.
Farmers of the region take turns every night for three months to ensure there is at least one person atop the wooden structure through the night to fish. This, after a hard day’s work in their farms.