This report gives an account of the various efforts made by the small-scale fisheries project of the Bay of Bengal Programme (BOBP) to improve the economic performance of fishing kattumarams within the constraints set by social and economic considerations outlined in the text.

A wide spectrum of possibilities has been investigated and some of them have been tried out in physical trials. Many of the ideas put forward during the course of the work were however discarded as nonviable after consultations with experts in different disciplines.

During the work the best available experts have been engaged and consulted. They include, besides BOBP staff, counterparts and fishermen, Messrs P. Gurtner and J. Fyson of the FAO Fishery Industries Division; Mr. G. Eddie, fishery engineering consultant, UK; Mr. J. McKillop, sail manufacturer, UK; Mr. G. Gowing, surf-crossing expert, Australia; and Mr. O. Gulbrandsen, naval architect, Norway. But the responsibility for opinions, errors or misjudgements in this report rests entirely with the BOBP. Parallel with the attempts to improve the kattumarams, extensive work was undertaken to develop motorized beachlanding craft. It is referred to in this report but the full account of these activities is given in other BOBP reports and working papers.

The small-scale fisheries project of the BOBP began 1979 from Madras. It is funded by the Swedish International Development Authority (SIDA) and executed by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Countries bordering the Bay of Bengal - Bangladesh, India, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Thailand are members of the Programme. Its main aims are to develop, demonstrate and promote technologies and methodologies to improve the conditions of small-scale fisherfolk and increase the production of fish from the small-scale sector in member countries.