When Chennai’s sea food edged out catch from rivers, estuaries in the city

The few remaining inland fishermen have registered themselves as sea-faring fishermen, and fish in the Adyar only when it rains. | Photo Credit: B. Jothi Ramalingam Until about four decades ago, people in Madras bought and consumed madava, keluthi, ooda, era, and nandu freshly caught from the city’s rivers and estuaries. You could hear fish mongers hawking out aloud “meen, ma, meen” urging the women of the houses to come out and buy. They would walk around residential localities, seeking prospective buyers. Pattinampakkam, Adyar, Kotturpuram, and Saidapet were excellent hunting grounds for inland fishermen. Using small nets and catamarans (wooden logs held together by ropes), they would fish in the pristine waters and slush near the river mouths, happy with a small catch, said Krishnamohan