Net effect: State fishermen, traders stare at crisis after Goa import ban

  • | Monday | 19th November, 2018

“If Goa does not want, we will take it to other states.”Rane, the Goa health minister, said there was no question of any relaxation. “The ban will continue till fish traders comply with all requirements and independent labs are in place to check the quality of fish,” he said, accusing people who have “monopolised the fish trade” of misleading others. “Those affected the most by the ban are consumers in Goa,” he said. “We have facilities to check for contamination, but have currently run out of test strips and have to get them from Goa. “One licence is sufficient for a licencee with 100 trucks or a turnover of ?30 crore per annum,” he said.

A crisis is looming over the six-month ban by Goa on seafood from Karnataka amid concerns of fish being laced with formalin to prolong shelf-life, with the health minister of that state, Vishwajit Rane, refusing to blink and the HDK cabinet meeting on Monday to find a solution to the issue. Fishermen in Karwar on Saturday blocked vehicles from Goa meant for transporting fish from entering Karnataka despite the Karnataka Karavali Meenugaarara Kriya Samithi, a consortium of 63 fishermen’s unions in the three coastal fishing districts, deciding on a wait-andwatch policy on assurances by state ministers. Fisheries minister Venkatrao Nadagouda has assured the unions that he would hold talks with his Goa counterpart to resolve the issue in a few days and urban development minister U T Khader has persuaded the fishermen to stay put till a decision by the cabinet.The samithi threatened to block all fish transporting vehicles from Goa to Kerala if Goa fails to lift the ban. Seafood traders , meanwhile, are hurrying to obtain licences as mandated by the Goa government transport consignments to export oriented units (EOUs) in Goa.Samithi general secretary Vasudeva Boloor said the ban was partisan since tests showed fish from Karnataka did not contain any traces of for malin. “The Goa gover n- ment is justified in trying to ensure that the state is free of for malin-contaminated fish, but it should have conveyed its decision to the Kar nataka gover nment,” he said. “Then based on the government’s decision, we would have complied with the rules. This suo motu decision by the Goa government is unjust.”The Goa government on November 12 issued an order banning the import of fish from other states for six months but exempted traders complying with food safety rules from the ban.In Karnataka, unlike Goa, food safety and drug control are in the ambit of two departments, so traders are getting licences from the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI).Food safety and standards senior officer HP Raju said his office has been receiving licence applications and had issued four so far. “One licence is sufficient for a licencee with 100 trucks or a turnover of ?30 crore per annum,” he said. “We have facilities to check for contamination, but have currently run out of test strips and have to get them from Goa. We have a manpower shortage too and conduct random checks. We have asked licencees to have consignments tested in private labs and give us the reports in the interim.”Sadakathulla of Diamond Marine Agency, a licence holder, says his firm encountered problems entering Goa when they did not have the FSSAI licence.“We send trucks to Goa whenever we have enough stock for EOUs,” he said, adding that his company transported various fish types including ribbonfish, seer, mackerel and cuttlefish.Traders in Karnataka say they are not aware of formalin being used for fish transported to Goa and Kerala because the travel time is less than six hours. “It does happen with fish arriving from states like Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and West Bengal since the transportation time is longer,” one trader said.Ibrahim, of Niyaz Sea Foods, who also obtained a licence a fortnight ago, dismisses the formalin scare as eyewash. “Those affected the most by the ban are consumers in Goa,” he said. “If Goa does not want, we will take it to other states.”Rane, the Goa health minister, said there was no question of any relaxation. “The ban will continue till fish traders comply with all requirements and independent labs are in place to check the quality of fish,” he said, accusing people who have “monopolised the fish trade” of misleading others.

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