Note on landings of pregnant sharks in Cochin Fisheries Harbour, Kerala

Sharks formed the major bycatch of pelagic longline and gillnet fishery which target high value fishes like tunas until recently. However, owing to the great demand for fresh and dried shark meet in the domestic market and expansion of fishing to distant waters there is targeted fishing for sharks. In India, major portion of the sharks caught by mechanized longliners and gillnetters are landed in Cochin Fisheries Harbour and Thoothoor fish landing centre. The annual catch of sharks in Kerala during 2017 was estimated at 2936 tonnes, of which 80% was landed in Cochin Fisheries Harbour