Fishiers of Karnataka

Fisheries in the national economy have gained importance both as a foreign exchange earner and as a generator of employment. In addition, this sector has assumed the characteristics of an industrial enterprise. Fish is the cheapest source of protein available for human diet. The Department of Fisheries was established in the year 1957 with an object to give fillip for production of fish by utilising the rich resources in Marine and Inland sector. Karnataka has about 5.76 lakh ha of inland water resources, 8000 ha of brackish water, 2.38 lakh ha of water logged and Alkaline area and 313.02 km of coastline with 27,000 Sq.km of continental shelf. The department is implementing several schemes for the better utilization of the resources and for the welfare of fishermen in particular and public in general.

The fish production in Karnataka was around 2.0 lakh tons in early eighties and reached to a peak of over 3.0 lakh tons in mid-nineties. The average fish production in the last 5 years is about 5.95 lakh tons with the contribution of Marine sector being 66% and Inland sector 34% for the year. The fish production from the state contributed about 4.46% of India’s total fish production for the year 2019-20 and ranks 9th position in total fish production, in Marine fish production 6th position and Inland fish production 9th position. The current level of per-capita fish availability in the state is around 8.08 kg. The contribution of Fisheries Sector to GSDP at current prices during 2011-12 was Rs. 2723 Crore and it has increased to Rs. 7827 Crore in 2020-21. Export of Marine products form Karnataka has increased from 0.98 lakh metric tonnes during 2013-14 to 1.05 lakh metric tons during 2020-21.

In the year 2020-21 the total fish production in the state is 5.99 lakh metric tons. In that Inland fish production is 2.52 lakh metric tons and Marine fish production is 3.47 lakh metric tons.

Inland Fisheries Resources in Karnataka

Type	Area/Length
Department Tanks	1.79 lakh ha
Grama Panchayat Tanks	1.24 lakh ha
Reservoir	2.72 lakh ha
Rivers	5813 km
Canals	3187 km
Brackish water are as 0.08 lakh ha	0.08 lakh ha
Production Potential 4.02 lakh MT	4.02 lakh MT

Fish Sancturies in Karnataka

Sl.No	Place/Taluk/District	River	Length of protected area
1	“Vahini Puskarani” (Ramanathapur) Arakalgud,Hassan	Cauvery	-
2	Ranganathittu, S.R.Patna, Mandya	Cauvery	5km
3	Muttathi area, Malavalli, Mandya	Cauvery	-
4	Shishila, Belthangadi, D.Kannada	Kumaradhara	500m
5	Abhirama fish sanctuary (Hariharapura) Koppa,Chikmagalur	Tunga	-
6	Dharmasthala, Belthangadi, D.Kannada	Nethravathi	1km
7	Kelkaru, Belthangadi, D.Kannada	Palguni	-
8	Marakatha, Sulya, D.Kannada Yenekkal	Kumaradhara	-
9	Seethanadi, Karkala,Udupi	Seethanadi	-
10	Nakurgaya, Puttur, D.Kannada	Nethravathi	-
11	Nisargadhama, Kushalnagara, Kodagu	Cauvery	-
12	Uppukala, Sulya, D.Kannada	Kallaje	-
13	Bachanayakanagudi, Sulya, D.Kannada Yenekkal	Kumaradhara	2km
14	Thodikana, Sulya, D.Kannada	Chandragiri	500m
15	Thingale, Karkala,Udupi	Seethanadi	500m
16	Sringeri,Chikmagalur	Tunga	1km
17	Jammatagi (Hariharapura), Koppa, Chikmagalur	Tunga	500m
18	Chippalagudda, Thirthahalli, Shimoga	Tunga	500m
19	Mattur-Hosahalli, ShimogaTaluk& Dist.	Tunga	1.5 Km
20	Shivanasamudra, Malavalli, Mandya	Shimsha	1.4 Km
21	Bhagavathi Chaya Kolla, SurpuraTaluk, Yadgir	Krishna	5 Km
22	Harangi Dam to Kudligi Dyavakere, Somwarpet Taluk,Kodagu District	Cauveri	5. 8 Km

Fish Production in Karnataka

Year	Marine	Inland	Total
2017-18	414348	188174	602522
2018-19	389491	197921	587412
2019-20	403368	228633	632001
2020-21(Upto Nov. 2020)	197189	107484	304673

Source: Economic Survey Report 2020-21