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The Status of the Marine Fisheries of West Bengal Coast of the Northern Bay of Bengal and Its Management Options: A Review

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Abstract

Marine fishery is one of the most important sectors for both economic and social development of the country. The whole coast of West Bengal was surveyed from July 2010 to August 2012 for acquiring data on marine fishing. The secondary data were also collected from various government departments and non-government organizations. After compiling all the data a clear picture of marine fisheries in the coastal region of West Bengal was emerged. Arius spp. has the height percentage (15.16) and Yellow Fin Tuna has the lowest percentage (0.06) of landing in West Bengal coast during 2006–2012. Bombay duck and Hairtail Ribbon fish landing shows a decreasing tendency in these 7 years. As the number of mechanically powered boats are increasing in recent years, the total marine fish landing from West Bengal coast is remained more or less static. Therefore, the catch per unit effort has declined significantly in recent years (r = 0.77). So, immediate remedial measures should be taken to manage sustainably, the marine fishery sector of West Bengal.

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Acknowledgments

The authors are grateful to the Department of Fisheries, Government of West Bengal for providing the data. We are also very grateful to the Indian National Center for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS) of Ministry of Earth Science, Government of India for funding the Potential Fishing Zone Validation Project. The second author also gratefully acknowledges Director, INCOIS for his encouragement and unconditional help. This is INCOIS contribution number 211. We are also thankful to the all field staff and fishermen for their valuable information.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Oceanographic Studies, Jadavpur University, Kolkata, 700032, West Bengal, India

    Sachinandan Dutta & Sugata Hazra

  2. Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services, Hyderabad, 500090, Andhra Pradesh, India

    Kunal Chakraborty

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  1. Sachinandan Dutta
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  2. Kunal Chakraborty
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  3. Sugata Hazra
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Correspondence to Sachinandan Dutta.

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Dutta, S., Chakraborty, K. & Hazra, S. The Status of the Marine Fisheries of West Bengal Coast of the Northern Bay of Bengal and Its Management Options: A Review. Proc Zool Soc 69, 1–8 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12595-015-0138-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12595-015-0138-7

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