JUDGMENT - KARNIK D.G., J.:-By this petition, the petitioners challenge the notifications dated 10th December, 1987 and dated 13th October, 1999 issued by the Government of Maharashtra under sub-section (1) of section 4 of the Maharashtra Marine Fishing Regulation Act, 1981 (for short the Act) prohibiting use of special type of fishing nets known as purse seine gear by mechanised fishing vessels within the territorial waters of the districts of Greater Mumbai, Thane, Raigad, Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg and further prohibiting mechanised fishing vessels operating purse seine gear beyond the territorial waters of the aforesaid districts to land the fish caught by such vessels in any port other than Mirkarwada Port in Ratnagiri district inter alia on the ground that the said notifications are violative of the petitioners right under Articles 14, 19 and 21 of the Constitution of India and on the ground that proper Advisory Committee was not constituted and proper consultations with the properly constituted committee were not held as required by the Act before issuance of the notifications.

2. The petitioners are fishermen residing in the coastal areas in Ratnagiri district of Maharashtra. They were catching Pelagi Fish (which consists of mackerals, sardins, cannes, ghols etc.) by using traditional vessels and traditional fishing nets. With the help of loans/subsidiaries given under the scheme of the State Government, the petitioners procured mechanised fishing crafts and started using purse seine nets for fishing since the year 1980 or thereabout. Initially, there was no conflict between the traditional fishermen carrying on fishing with traditional nets in non-mechanised boats and the petitioners using purse seine nets in mechanised boats. The petitioners allege that due to local politics, some rift was developed between the users of the purse seine nets and traditional fishermen; for pleasing the traditional fishermen the Government of Maharashtra issued the impugned notifications prohibiting the use of purse seine gear in the territorial waters of the entire coastal line of Maharashtra without holding proper consultations with properly constituted Advisory Committee as required under section 4 of the Act. The impugned notifications are also alleged to be violative of the petitioners right guaranteed under Articles 14, 19 and 21 of the Constitution of India.

3. Sections 3 and 4 of the Act read as under :

Section 3:

3. Constitution of Advisory Committees: (1) The State Government may by order constitute an Advisory Committee for each coastal District, with the District Magistrate as the Chairman and the Assistant Director of Fisheries of the District as the member- Secretary, with representatives of the State Port Department and the Police Department as members. The Chairman shall co-opt representatives of other Government Departments and of the fishermen and the trade as he may deem fit. The Committee shall recommend to the State Government the regulations to be enforced under Chapter II.

(2) The committee shall advise the State Government on the following issues which may come up for consideration while enforcing the Act:--

(i) reservation of specified areas of these for fishing by vessels of a specified type;

(ii) prohibition of vessels of specified type or specified types from fishing in any specified area

(iii) laying down the maximum number of fishing vessels of specified type to be allowed for fishing in specified areas;

(iv) laying down the maximum number of fishing vessels of specified types to be registered in each of the ports in the District;

(v) regulation or prohibition to catch specified species of fish in any specified area;

(vi) regulation or prohibition of specified fishing gear in specified areas;

(vii) prescribe timings for fishing operations where necessary;

(viii) any other matter which would facilitate effective enforcement of the provisions of the Act;

Section 4:

Power to regulate, restrict or prohibit certain fishing acti

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