Governability Challenges in Sustaining Small-Scale Fisheries in an Urban Context: A Study of Cochin Backwaters, India

Abstract

The water body that stretches from Azhikode in the north to Alappuzha in the south in Kerala, the southernmost state of India, is generally known as the Cochin Estuarine System or the Cochin backwaters. This backwater system provides a nursery ground for many marine species, making it a productive fishing area for many small-scale fishing communities living in the vicinity. Evidence shows, however, that this water body has been subjected to both horizontal and vertical shrinkages due to various reasons associated with urbanization and industrialization. This chapter examines the challenges that modern development is posing for small-scale fisheries and how small-scale fishers cope with it. We argue that governance interventions to address the threat of urban and industrial development on backwater fisheries requires a deliberative process involving all stakeholders, particularly local organizations (panchayats) in which small-scale fishers play an important role. In order to improve governability of the Cochin backwaters, a platform needs to be created for small-scale fishers so that they can negotiate on equal terms with their urban counterparts, who hold economic and political power, and whose interests centre around industrialization, tourism, and urban infrastructure development.