Sustainability at a cost: An inceptive analysis of “extended” fishing ban on the livelihoods of fishers of Tamil Nadu

An emphasis on sustainable marine fish production has paved the way for the enactment of Marine Fisheries Regulation Acts and subsequent regulations in India. A closed season ban on fishing has been one of the very few successful regulatory measures since its introduction in 2001 in Tamil Nadu. Since 2017, the fishing ban period has been extended from 45 to 60 days for the east coast of India, for ecosystem‐based marine fisheries management. This study analyses the socioeconomic impacts of change in the fishing ban (closed season) across the four coastal zones of Tamil Nadu. For the past 10 years, CPUE has been stable or increased marginally. Among the four coasts, the relative change in employment and labour income loss was highest for Palk Bay (36.84%). Transaction costs of implementation of the ban caused an additional expense of Rs 496.5 million to the Government in 2017 and the overall total labour income loss has leaped from Rs 1,638.2 to 2,100.2 million due to the extension of the ban. The fishing ban has aided in the recovery of habitat and regeneration of stock through recruitment. Training and capacity building on alternative livelihood options are highly recommended to enable the workers to cope with the ban period.