The generous seabed abounds with prawns and mackerel that traditionally make up curries, the staple of daily food in Sri Lanka.

But with the crisis, there is no longer enough gasoline to go fishing.

This phenomenon has a direct impact on the food needs of the country.

"On good days, you have to start queuing at 5:00 a.m. to hope to have gas at 3:00 p.m.," Arulanandan, an experienced fisherman, told AFP.

"But some wait for nothing, when it's their turn, there is no more fuel," he adds.

A woman sorts fish in Negombo, Sri Lanka Ishara S. KODIKARA AFP

Around the estuary, idle crew members bask in the sun or lie on the rails of trawlers cradled to the rhythm of the waves, limply pulling slats on their cigarettes.

Their boats are equipped to go offshore for weeks, but fuel shortages have most of them stuck in port.

It has also immobilized about three-quarters of those engaged in coastal fishing, such as Arulanandan.

Ishara S. KODIKARA AFP

The situation has chain effects: if the trawlers specialized in fishing for bait cannot leave for lack of gasoline, others, even with a full tank, are stuck on the ground.

"When I don't bring home money, my children ask me: + why there is nothing to eat? +", says Arulanandan.

"They can't understand the storm we're going through."

"Everything is expensive today"

It is an hour's drive further south, in the suburbs of Colombo, that the largest fish market in the country is held, a very lively open-air hangar where fishermen come from all over the country to sell their fish. basically.

A stall at Sri Lanka's largest fish market in the Colombo suburb of Ishara S. KODIKARA AFP

We are feeling the full force of the consequences of the crisis: much less fish and seafood on the stalls and much fewer potential customers.

"Buyers come from afar. For lack of fuel, they can no longer make the trip", describes Mohammed Asneer, who sells shrimp.

"Our sales are decreasing while our expenses are increasing".

"I don't want to live in this country anymore," laments the young man, assuring that while working in the fish market, he himself cannot afford a kilo.

The Sri Lankan government has said it is aware that the country is going through its deepest crisis since the country's independence in 1948.

Inflation is skyrocketing, the cost of diesel has almost doubled in a few months and food prices rose by 25% in January, according to official statistics.

"Everything is expensive these days, it's getting very difficult to work," says KW Shiromi, owner of Mama'place, a seafood restaurant in the charming south coast town of Weligama.

While its customers, especially tourists, delighted, contemplate the waves while having lunch, KW Shiromi admits having seriously revised its prices upwards, to compensate for the shortages.

"The government should do something to improve the situation to make people happy," he said.

"Otherwise everyone in Sri Lanka will suffer."

© 2022 AFP