K1SH-CURINU 



FISH 



Trade 





the reports of the Madras Salt Department we 1,-arn th.it I M'l 

 ds had been organised at convenient centres along the west 

 east coasts of the Presidency. In 1902-3 the total amount of fish 

 l.iouu'ht to them to bo cured came to 50,374 tons, as against 68,992 tons in Amoant Oured. 

 the previous year. The production came to 814,716 maunds of cured fish, 

 of which it is stated 631,277 maunds were consumed in the Presidency. 

 Thiirston gives the returns of the three most important fish as follows: 

 Sardine, 387,300 maunds in 1896, 253600 maunds in 1897, and only 

 31.000 maunds in 1898 ; Mackerel for these same years, 253,857, 90,035, 

 anil foi.'.ilti maunds respectively; and Seir, 12,388, 24,321, and 8,088 

 ma u uds respectively. It would appear that from 60 to 65 per cent, of 

 the South Indian fish-curing is done in the Salt Department Sub-Division 

 of Calicut (including Malabar and South Canara), such as Calicut, Canna- 

 nore, Mangalore and Malpe, etc. There are several other important 

 centres such as Chicacole, Tinnevelly, Cocanada, Chingleput, Nellore, Nega- 

 patam, etc. Malpe is interesting as the centre to which the fishermen of 

 Ratnagiri and Goa come for the seir fishing season. [Cf. Memo, prepared 

 by Finance and Commerce Dept. Ind. on the Salt Dept., Sept. 1894, 42-3. J 



The infernal traffic in fish, as in most other Indian commodities, can 

 alone be studied by the perusal of the official statistics of Foreign and Official 

 Coasting Trade. Fish do not appear in the returns of Rail and River-borne Statistics. 

 Traffic, so that very little can be learned of the internal transactions. The 

 following are the headings under which they are recorded : (a) Fish- 

 maws and Shark-fins ; (6) Fish, Dry Unsalted ; (c) Fish, Dry Salted ; 

 (d) Fish, Wet Salted ; and (e) Fish-oils. 



Trade in Fish-maws and Shark-fins (see p. 542). India IMPORTS Imports, 

 on an average 5 lakhs of rupees' worth. These come from Aden, 

 Arabia, Mekran and Sonmiani, Persia and Zanzibar. The highest 

 record during the six years ending 31st March, 1907, was in the year 

 1901-2, when the imports stood at 1,797,114 lb., valued at Rs. 6,58,200 ; 

 of that amount Bombay took 1,755,877 lb., valued at Rs. 6,27,554, and 

 the balance went to Sind, Madras and Burma. The imports during the 

 years 1903-7 have been : 1903-4, 1,588,692 lb., Rs. 5,87,444 ; 1904-5, 

 1,330,326 lb., Rs. 5,05,193 ; 1905-6, 1,388,365 lb., Rs. 5,25,394 ; and 1906-7, 

 1, 215,972 lb., valued at Rs. 4,84,465. Practically the entire imports are 

 re-exported, and from 6 to 14 lakhs of rupees' worth of Indian produce 

 exported at the same time. This may approximately be said to represent 

 on the average a total EXPORT traffic of 20 lakhs of rupees in value. Thus, Exports, 

 taking the year 1903-4, the foreign shark-fins and fish-maws re-exported 

 came to 1,878,342 lb., valued at Rs. 14,36,580, and the exports drawn from 

 Indian supplies came to 481,873 lb., valued at Rs. 5,14,006 ; and in 

 1906-7 the re-exports came to 1,350,020 lb., Rs. 11,73,345, and the ex- 

 ports 565,435 lb., Rs. 5,13,350. Bombay is of course the chief exporting 

 province, and exported out of the totals mentioned, in 1903-4, 1,876,074 lb. 

 foreign shark-fins and fish- maws and 49,520 lb. Indian ; in 1905-6, 

 1,336,804 lb. foreign, but no Indian ; but Bombay, however, is by no 

 means the most important exporting centre for the Indian fish-maws and 

 shark-fins. In the Indian produce traffic, Burma usually heads the list, 

 and in 1903-4 exported 281,296 lb., in 1905-6, 243,592 lb. ; being followed 

 by Madras with 107,582 lb. and 153,614 lb. ; Karachi with 14,923 lb. and 

 113,804 lb. ; and lastly Bengal with 28,552 lb. and 14,768 lb. in the two 

 years mentioned. The most important receiving country is of course 



549 



