Point of Law: Fishing regulations - sub-section (1) of section 4 of the 1981 Act, the requirement is that the state government may pass such an order of regulation, restriction or prohibition but only after 'consultation’ with the advisory committee constituted under section 3 of the 1981 Act. This difference in the statutory.

JUDGMENT :

Ujjal Bhuyan, J.

Heard Mr. Y.H. Muchhala, learned senior counsel for the petitioners; Mr. Ashutosh Kumbhakoni, learned Advocate General for respondent No.1 -State; and Ms. Gayatri Singh, learned senior counsel for respondent No.2.

2. By filing this petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, petitioners seek quashing of order dated 05.02.2016 passed by the Joint Secretary to the Government of Maharashtra in the Agriculture, Animal Husbandry, Dairy Development and Fisheries Department.

3. By the impugned order dated 05.02.2016 issued under section 4(1) of the Maharashtra Marine Fishing Regulation Act, 1981, respondent No.1 i.e., State of Maharashtra in the Fisheries Department has regulated fishing in the territorial waters of the state in the manner indicated therein including non-granting of new licenses for purse seine/ ring seine fishing with the ultimate object of bringing down such fishing licenses to 182: allowing purse seine/ring seine fishing through mechanized vessel only during the period from September to December and that too within Zones II, III and IV as specified therein. In addition, certain other restrictions have been imposed such as mesh size.

4. Five petitioners have joined together and have instituted the present writ petition in a representative capacity representing 222 persons who carry on purse seine fishing in the coast of Maharashtra. A list of all those persons carrying on purse seine fishing in the State of Maharashtra has been annexed to the writ petition.

5. It is stated that petitioners belong to fishermen community. They are engaged in their traditional occupation of fishing in the coast of Maharashtra through which they earn their livelihood. Over the years they have improvised fishing techniques used by them and in course of time they started using purse seine net (referred to as ‘PSN’ for short).

6. State of Maharashtra enacted the Maharashtra Marine Fishing Regulation Act, 1981 (briefly ‘the 1981 Act’ hereinafter) to provide for the regulation of fishing by fishing vessels in the sea along the coastline of the State of Maharashtra and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto. In exercise of the powers conferred by section 25 of the 1981 Act, the Maharashtra Marine Fishing Regulation Rules, 1982 (briefly ‘the 1982 Rules’ hereinafter) have been enacted.

7. According to the petitioners owing to local politics and business rivalry, respondent No.1 had issued notifications dated 10.12.1987 and 13.10.1999 under section 4(1) of the 1981 Act prohibiting use of special type of fishing nets known as purse seine gear by mechanized fishing vessels within the territorial waters of the districts of Greater Mumbai, Thane, Raigad, Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg. The same was challenged before this Court by a group of petitioners in Writ Petition No.285 of 1988. It is stated that vide order dated 05.07.1988 this Court had admitted the writ petition for hearing and stayed the notification dated 10.12.1987. Challenge to the second notification dated 13.10.1999 was incorporated in the writ petition by way of amendment. By the judgment and order dated 09.03.2004, a division bench of this Court allowed the writ petition by striking down the impugned notifications dated 10.12.1987 and 13.10.1999. The said decision has since been reported in 2004 (5) Bom.C.R. 766, Abdul Hamid Vs. State of Maharashtra.

8. Respondent No.1 challenged the said judgment of this Court dated 09.03.2004 before the Supreme Court by filing Petition for Special Leave to Appeal (C) No.10316 of 2004. While the Special Leave Petition has been admitted and numbered as Civil Appeal No.8334 of 2004, Supreme Court declined to stay operation of the judgment and order dated 09.03.2004. It is stated that the said Civil Appeal is pending before the Supreme Court.

9. Petitioners and other traditional fishermen got their vessels registered under section 9 of the 1981 Act and applied before the Licensing Officer for grant of licence u