Eversince the Department of Ocean Development took up the dissemination of Potential Fishing Zone (PFZ) information to the coastal fishermen, the necessity of providing additional assistance to the fishermen in locating the PFZs, has been immensely felt. Without appropriate marine instrumentation for navigation in the sea and finding the fish shoals, it will not be possible for the fishermen to judge the distance from the shore and also to locate the fishing ground. The most important instruments required for this purpose are Global Positioning System(GPS) Navigator and a Fish Finder. The mechanised fishing boats invariably are equipped with a rudimentary navigation tool viz. the marine compass. Lack of more sophisticated and accurate navigational aids leads to unwarranted sailing, thereby loosing time and precious fuel. Using the PFZ data, with GPS receiver, the fishermen could steer themselves to the fishing ground and back home safely and accurately. Another useful fishing aid is the electronic fish finder. It provides information about the presence of fish, after the fishermen have reached the fishing zone. This will avoid any ambiguous decision on where to fish.

Keeping in view the usefulness of the GPS Navigator and Fish Finder as an integrated system which will be affordable by the small-scale fisherfolk and easy to maintain and operate, the Department of Ocean Development has taken up a pilot project for indigenous development of Integrated Fish Finder-cum-GPS Navigation System, as a community oriented programme through Electronics Research and Development Centre (ER&DC), Trivandrum, during 1995-96. Under this pilot project, 100 nos. of such Integrated GPS-cum-Fish Finders, 50 each by M/s. Aerospace Limited, Bangalore and M/s. Bharat Electronics Limited, Bangalore, will be fabricated and distributed to the small-scale mechanised fisherfolk during 1996-97 for demonstration.