Casting the net wider

-- The succulent Patagonian toothfish is the bone of contention in the war between poachers and fishing patrols in Australia. Long-range, high-tech trawlers are being used by poachers to illegally catch us $200 million worth of this fish from sub-Antarctic seas. The fish is marketed in the us as Chilean sea bass. Australia wants that the un should list the fish as an endangered species. To check the growing erosion of its fish stocks, the country is strengthening naval patrols, garnering un actions, putting diplomatic pressure and marshalling legal sanctions. Authorities believe that the main pirates and fish traders have corporate and operational links with Honk Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, Spain and Indonesia. Conservationists have pointed out that 80 per cent of the catches of the toothfish are illegal.