IMPACT OF FISH CO-OPERATIVES ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT OF FISHERIES OF GOBINDSAGAR RESERVOIR BILASPUR, HIMACHAL PRADESH, INDIA

Fishing is the lifeline of dam outsee’s economy for their survival and is being done only through license system under the fold of co-operative societies. This Gobindsagar dam offers a classical example of exploiting large reservoirs to complete the river valley projects for power generation and production of high quality and quantity of fish protein. It has remarkable fish production ranging from 94kg-120kg/ha/yr which was considered to be the backbone of the reservoir fisheries management system. The increase in yield may be achieved due to multidimensional policies including the interest of fishermen co-operative societies and scientific approaches to cover all the spheres of fish and fisheries resources. Present study deals with fishermen community as they were considered to be one of the weakest section of our society due to illiteracy, poverty and lack of knowledge about fish biology and technology. This vicious circle is further strengthened by lack of departmental support both in infrastructure and finance. Consequently, fishermen are exploited by middlemen, who act as money lenders, traders and contractors. The fishery cooperative movement is considered to be an effective bridge for the upliftment of fishermen and fishery industry. Fishermen cooperatives could spare them from exploitation and improve their socio-economic conditions. Efforts also have been made in this direction on Gobindsagar reservoir and have yielded good results in some areas of fisheries resources, but the overall picture of fishery cooperative was very discouraging and vague.