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PENTAKOTA. 



The fishermen and curers are generally poor with the exception 

 of one or two who are a little better off. The curers and fishermen 

 belong to the castes of Pallees and Vadas. The net owners borrow 

 money at an interest of 2 to 3 per cent per month. Each net owner 

 engages a number of hired labourers and advances Rs. 20 to each 

 man to work under him but no interest is charged on such advances. 

 The fish caught is divided into three shares, one of which is set 

 apart for the net and the other two are divided equally among all 

 the men engaged in operating the net. 



RAJIAHPETA. 



The fishermen are generally poor and borrow money from 

 middlemen at high rates of interest ranging from 2 to 2^ per cent 

 per month. There are about 800 houses in all. Generally the 

 fishermen are Jalaris and Vadas by caste but there are also some 

 Pallees. Labour is hired only by the owner of a Peddavala who 

 pays them not in cash but in kind, the quantity of fish caught being 

 divided equally among them after setting aside a third of the 

 catches for the net owner. The boats are built by the fishermen 

 themselves. 



KONAPAPAPETA. 



The fishermen and curers are mostly poor and worse off 

 pecuniarily than those at Uppada. Curers are all Vadas (not 

 fishermen by birth who are known as Jalaris but fishermen by 

 occupation). All the curers are females who are mostly relatives 

 either close or distant of the men who own boats and nets. These 

 are financed by capitalists or middlemen. The fish is sold in 

 lots. Two or more curers club together and purchase a lot and 

 one of them makes herself responsible to the head fisherman for 

 due payment. One month's credit is usually allowed and when 

 times are hard even two months are allowed. In the case of 

 fishermen it is somewhat different. As an Alivi boat with its net 

 and full complement of ropes, etc., is very expensive, costing more 

 than Rs. 1,000, some thirty fishermen enter into joint partnership 

 and one among them is selected as headman. He then goes to 

 various money-lending persons and obtains from them sums 

 ranging from Rs. 25 to 200 till the requisite sum of money is 

 collected for preparing the net and boat. Something like Rs. 200 

 to 250 is spent in drinking bouts while the nets and boat are under 

 construction. The money is usually borrowed at 2 per cent per 

 mensem. As a rule it is said the whole amount is generally paid 

 up within a year if the season is good. Money is lent out by the 

 money-lenders to the fishermen merely on personal security. An 

 Alivi net owner engages above 40 coolies and pays them at annas 

 2 per head per haul. When the catches are heavy labourers are 

 employed for carrying and gutting fish outside the yard, and are 

 paid at six pies to one anna per head, and in addition a handful or 

 two of fish is given. 



UPPADA. 



This is an important fishing village in the Godavari district 

 inhabited by a large number of Vadas, The village is about two 



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