Mobile App That Stops Indian Fishers Entering Sri Lankan Waters

MS Swaminathan Research Foundation has developed an app which not only prevents Indian Fishermen from entering Sri Lankan Waters but also indicates the potential fishing zones, movement of fishing shoals; marks danger coral reefs and shrunken ship wreckages. The Fisher Friend Mobile Application (FFMA) is being used by 10,000 fishermen families. Fishermen in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala use this app to get the geographical area where fishes are present in abundance.

Need A lot of issues has come to the light where fishermen had inadvertently entered Sri Lankan waters and were captured. Also, after 2004 tsunami, the need to take safety measures became more. This app helps the fishermen to locate themselves and fearlessly roam around in Indian territory. Also, this app enables fishers to know about the weather information, wind speed, warning against cyclones and wave height.

Features of FFMA The Fishermen Friend Mobile Application helps fishers to go fearlessly without being lost in the Indian Ocean. This also informs about the weather conditions, wind speed, wave height. The app also has a cyclone alert in it which is very beneficial for the fishermen. This app also helps in locating possible fishing zones. It also marks the danger zone, and it has an emergency feature. In the case of medical emergency, the fishermen can message the nearest coastguard for help. Also, it gives information about humid weathers which helps women to dry fish.

Usage The vibrate and alarm option in the app sends a signal that indicates the borderline. Five kilometres before reaching the border the alarm will alert the fishermen about the location, and it will continuously repeat after 30 seconds until the border is reached. This app is available in 6 languages including English and can also be used offline in the absence of a network.