Traditional Fishermen of Kerala
2004. Fishermen in Kerala, one of India's nine maritime states and its largest producer of fish, still ply their traditional method of fishing, an exhausting twelve hour process of dragging huge nets out to sea in marrakalams then hauling them in by hand. Official figures state that there are around 100,000 active fishermen along the Kerala coast, working in the traditional artisanal sector.The beaches on this southernmost tip of India are divided between Muslims and Christians who have been in conflict with each other since the 1960's because of two big changes. The advent of mechanised fishing, which has resulted in a severe depletion of fish stocks, and the pressures of economic liberalisation and globalisation.