6 April 2023

The continued demand for them has led to a steep fall in shark landings over the last three decades.

The sky is still a silvery-blue as the sun’s rays penetrate through a low-hanging haze. In the coastal town of Kakinada in Andhra Pradesh, against the backdrop of the shimmering sea, yellow boats bob up and down impatiently as if waiting to be let loose. Behind a line of chemical fertilizer and edible oil industries a narrow lane leads up to the Kumbabhishekam fish landing centre.

This vast open space with a temple at its edge fills up in minutes when the morning haul is brought in. There are small trucks, big trucks, fisherwomen sitting in neat rows with wicker baskets, and a few hundred people milling around.

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