December 30th. I was at Kovalam watching the local fishermen pull in a huge fishing net. It is a sight to behold - 50 or so chocolate brown men pulling rythmically to the beats of some folksongs. After about an hour or so they drew in the catch. Unfortunately, about 20 or so puffer fish and eels had come in along with the other fish. Puffer fish, though a delicacy in some places, have no market in Trivandrum, Kerala. And so they were left to die.
It is heartbreaking. It costs nothing to pile them up into a catamaran and drop them back in the sea. Or to even manually fling them back in. Just a little time and a little care. But evidently many of us lack that.
I've worked with WWF, and its appalling how many olive ridleys lose their lives due to similar callousness. It is extremely frustrating when you realise that its not greed or luxury or even sport that these animals die for, but blatant callousness.
Its about 10 minutes of work to fling a dying fish back in the sea and ensure that the waves dont bring it back. Its worth the effort. Please.
