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The dead or sub-fossil chank industry is carried on in 
the Jaffna Lagoon, a vast sheet of very shallow landlocked 
water some 24 miles long by 6 miles wide. The chief 
collecting grounds are between Tannankelappu and 
Kilali along the north shore and around Punaryn on the 
south side. The shells are found both buried in the mud 
of the lagoon, and in pits dug along the shore at 
Tannankelappu. Latterly some deposits have also 
been found and worked in the shallow strait between the 
islands of Velanai and Punkudutivu. 
These‘dead chanks are collected by the people of the 
villages scattered along the lagoon. ‘They wade out into 
the shallows, sometimes even up to their shoulders, and 
with the assistance of a long iron rod probe about in the 
mud till the point strikes against a chank, when they 
use the second instrument they carry, a hook fastened to 
the end of a pole, to hook the shell and haul it to the 
surface. These men become wonderfully expert in the 
use of the probe and hook ; to hook the shell properly 
and get it out require no mean dexterity. 
Stores are situated along the shores of the lagoon 
where the shells are collected by the merchants who buy 
up the catches from the villagers. 
The catch of dead shells is estimated at from twelve 
to fourteen lakhs per annum, while that of live shells is 
about ten or eleven lakhs, varying according to the 
amount of labour available. 
