The State Fisheries Department has initiated a comprehensive policy overhaul aimed at enhancing coastal security, modernising tracking infrastructure, and minimising risks for fishermen operating along the Andhra Pradesh coastline.
The administrative push follows recent maritime accidents that exposed critical vulnerabilities in safety protocols and vessel visibility during search and rescue operations.
Hull colour modification
As part of the overhaul, officials plan to replace the conventional blue-coloured lower hull of fishing boats with a high-visibility orange colour.
Recent marine investigations near Gangavaram Port revealed that when vessels capsize in rough weather, the blue coloured hull remains exposed and blends with the deep blue seawater, severely limiting the ability of aerial and surface search teams to locate the vessel.
Officials said that the the yellow and blue colour-coding scheme was established more than 15 years ago to identify regional registries following security concerns that emerged after the Mumbai terror attacks.
Speaking to The Hindu, Fisheries Joint Director (JD) LBS Vardhan confirmed that the commissioner had instructed the department to work on the proposal. An official from the Secretariat said that a formal draft proposal had already been prepared and would be submitted to the Union Ministry of Fisheries for review and approval.
Transponder compliance
Authorities note that tracking infrastructure faces severe operational hurdles because operators frequently switch off transponders that had been distributed free of cost under central schemes to evade administrative monitoring.
Deactivating the two-way communication devices leaves rescue teams effectively blind during emergencies, making rescue operations difficult. Ensuring active transponder compliance is critical for relaying real-time weather alerts and positional coordinates, said officials.
Drone surveillance
To bridge existing monitoring gaps, the administration is actively evaluating next-generation surveillance measures, including the utilisation of drones for rapid safety checks and rescue support within national waters extending up to twelve nautical miles from the coast.
According to officials, the fisheries sector in Andhra Pradesh has a total fleet of approximately 29,000 vessels, consisting of 1,500 mechanised boats, 22,000 motorized boats, and 5,000 non-motorized crafts.
To optimise resource allocation, the department has structured its safety modernisation initiative in three operational phases. In the first phase, the mechanised fleet will undergo hull colour modifications and transponder enforcement. This will be followed by motorised and non-motorized vessels in the subsequent stages.
These urgent reforms come in the wake of a series of fishing vessel capsizes along the coast. The most notable incident which occurred on July 4, when a mechanized fishing vessel carrying seven crew members capsized about 10 nautical miles off the Gangavaram coast due to engine failure amid rough sea conditions, resulting in six missing fishermen being presumed dead despite a multi-agency search by the Indian Coast Guard and the Navy.
Published - July 23, 2026 09:56 pm IST