Design aspects of Dol (Bag) nets of Ratnagiri Maharashtra stateIndia

Dol net has been used commercially for more than two decades in Ratnagiri. Dolnets were operated from Jambhari and Dabhol in Ratnagiri. In Jambhari there were two types of dol nets viz. mosquito dol net and sajachi dol net. The dol nets had three main parts viz.mouthbelly and cod end section. Dol net as a gear is so efficient that it can be operated to capture fish not only from near bottom but also from mid-column to a few fathoms below the surface of water. The techniques of settingrigging and operation of the gear are rather complex.It is amazing that the iliterate fishermen since their forefather’s time have perfected them indigenously using the natural forces such as wavestides and currents and that too without the tutored knowledge of physics or marine engineering etc. Compared with other universal passive gears like gill netdol net is rather restricted to certain areas only and is unique in its ingenuity and is a non-selectivelocation-specific gearthe origin of which fades into antiquity.Therefore in present study an attempt was made to document the variation observed with respect to design specificationsrigging and modalities of operation of dol netsin Ratnagiri