India’s marine fish landings totalled 3.47 million tonnes in 2024, representing a slight decline of 2% compared to the previous year’s catch, according to new figures released by the ICAR-Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI).
With regards to regions, Gujarat retained its top position in overall fish landings with 7.54 lakh tonnes, followed by Tamil Nadu (6.79 lakh tonnes) and Kerala (6.1 lakh tonnes).
CMFRI’s annual marine fish landing estimates also showed that Indian mackerel remained the most landed resource in the country at 2.63 lakh tonnes, followed by oil sardines at 2.41 lakh tonnes.
Across India, species such as Indian mackerel, threadfin bream, oil sardines, ribbonfish, non-penaeid shrimps and cephalopods recorded declines in 2024 compared to the previous year, while landings of lesser sardines, penaeid shrimps, anchovies and tunnies increased.
While the west coast region suffered an overall decrease in landings, the east coast showed an increasing trend, with exceptions in Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh.
Maharashtra registered the highest growth of 47% compared to the previous year. West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Odisha also saw notable increases of 35%, 20% and 18%, respectively. However, states like Karnataka, Goa, and Daman & Diu experienced significant declines in landings.
CMFRI pointed out that cyclonic storms such as Dana, Fengal, Remal and Asna significantly impacted fishing activities last year and contributed to the overall decline, while an increased number of heatwave days in Andhra Pradesh and Kerala further disrupted operations.
The analysis highlighted that Kerala recorded a marginal decrease of 4% in the marine fish catch in 2024 compared to the previous year. Indian oil sardines topped the list of most caught species in the state with 1.49 lakh tonnes – an increase of 7.6%. Indian mackerel (61,490 tonnes), penaeid shrimp (44,630 tonnes), anchovies (44,440 tonnes) and threadfin breams (33,890 tonnes) were the other major contributors to Kerala’s total marine catch. Its Indian mackerel landings declined 16%.
The state also experienced an unusual fluctuation in landings of oil sardines. With a severe scarcity in the first-quarter, prices rose to Rs 350-400 per kg. However, from September onwards, as landings surged exceeding one lakh tonne in the last quarter, prices dropped sharply to Rs 20-30 per kg.
Compared to 2023, southern districts of the state (Thiruvananthapuram to Ernakulam) saw a decline in landings while northern districts (Malappuram to Kasaragod) registered an increase.
The Fishery Resources Assessment, Economics and Extension Division of the CMFRI estimated the annual marine fish landings of the country through its online data collection system.
