Sea cucumber conservation in Palk Bay and Gulf of Mannar, India "An evaluation of the current conservation measures on sea cucumber stocks in Palk Bay and Gulf of Mannar of India"

Abstract

Sea cucumber fishery and trade were one of the top non-finfish income streams for the coastal people of Palk Bay and Gulf of Mannar in the South East coast of India. As there was no regulation to control the fishery, there was a concern on decline in sea cucumber populations. In order to conserve the over-exploited stocks, the Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Climate Change, Government of India banned the fishery and trade of sea cucumbers by including them under Wild Life Protection Act 1972 since 2001. The enforcement of a blanket ban of sea cucumber fishing over the last 14 years might have helped in reviving their populations; at the same time, the ban would possibly had a social and economic impact on scores of people, who were dependent on the sea cucumber fishery. To understand the situation, the Bay of Bengal Large Marine Ecosystem (BOBLME) project approved a short term project to Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (India). The project was intended to understand the sea cucumber stocks and implications of the ban on the livelihood of fishers in Palk Bay and Gulf of Mannar. The purpose of the project was also to suggest management options for conservation and sustainable use of sea cucumber resources