Fishermen also face heat of shortage of commercial LPG cylinders in Karnataka

Fishermen leader Ramesh Kunder said the lack of commercial LPG cylinders is already affecting fishing operations, as crews rely on them to prepare food during trips.

Udupi/ Mangaluru: The shortage of commercial LPG cylinders has begun to worry fishermen along the coast of Dakshina Kannada and Udupi, as most fishing boats depend entirely on LPG for cooking while they are at sea.

Fishermen leader Ramesh Kunder said that the lack of commercial LPG cylinders is already affecting fishing operations, as crews rely on them to prepare food during their trips. Speaking to DH, he explained that a typical purse seine boat carries around 30 crew members and one commercial LPG cylinder usually lasts only two to three days.

“At present nearly 70 per cent of the fishing boats have already ventured into the sea. If the shortage continues, more than 60 per cent of these boats will be affected because cooking becomes a major challenge during long fishing trips,” he said.

Kunder pointed out that fishermen cannot easily switch to firewood because it is extremely dangerous to use in a fishing boat. “We require big double-burner stoves for cooking, but most boats are completely dependent on LPG stoves. As a result, manufacturers are rarely producing large burner stoves now, and we are unable to find them in the market,” he said.

He added that if such stoves were available, fishermen could at least use diesel instead of kerosene to cook food during emergencies. “Right now, we don’t even have that option, which is making the situation more difficult,” he noted.

Fishermen’s Association president Dayanand Suvarna echoed similar concerns, and said that the shortage has created uncertainty among the fishing community. Former association president Krishna Suvarna said the crisis could have wider implications if fuel supply problems worsen. “If the supply of crude oil and diesel is also disrupted, fishing activities and fish exports could be severely affected. This is the season when fishermen usually get good business and better income,” he said.

Krishna Suvarna also noted that the shift to LPG cylinders in fishing boats over the years had significantly reduced accidents caused by traditional stoves. “Earlier, kerosene stoves often caused accidents on boats. With LPG, such incidents have almost disappeared,” he said. Despite the challenges, he expressed hope that fishermen would find ways to cope with the situation. “Even if we must go back to traditional stoves, we will try to manage the crisis. But a steady supply of commercial LPG is very important for the fishing community,” he added.

Trawl Boat Association, Mangaluru President Chethan Bengre said “a trawl boat with 10 members on board takes two LPG commercial cylinders to prepare breakfast, lunch, dinner, tea/coffee, and heat water, while going for fishing. Normally, a trawl boat goes deep sea fishing for 10 days. Without the availability of the cylinders, we may have to go back to the olden era wherein we used to take kerosene for cooking. But it is not easy as the availability of kerosene is also limited and fishermen will have to purchase stoves required for kerosene as well.”

Further, the war has affected the export of quality fish. As a result, fishermen are incurring loss. Without the export, we have to sell it in the open market and price may not be lucrative, he said.

"March- April is the peak season for demand for fish. If we are unable to go fishing due to non availability of LPG, then the fishermen will be at a total loss," said Bengre.

Former chairman of the Karnataka Fisheries Development Corporation (KFDC) Nithin Kumar said "majority of the fishing boats have ventured into sea for fishing with the available LPG cylinder. Problems will arise when they return back from fishing and set for fishing again in case the issue is not solved at the earliest."