Kochi: Chinese fishing nets that came to India centuries ago under the patronage of Chinese travellers still dot several parts of Kerala.

While the country of origin has almost dumped these nets, they continue to remain in India as a reminder of the centuries-long relationship between the two regions.

At a place like Fort Kochi which is flocked by tourists from the workd over, these nets are still in use. All credit for this goes to the group of fishermen who toil to maintain them even though the returns are very unattractive.

The government gives little help to fishermen for maintenance of the nets. Yet, they sweat it out to generate funds for their maintenance.

According to a local Vijayan, the nets are normally made of teak logs. But it is no longer viable to replace the worn out logs with new teak logs. Instead steel pipes are used, he says.

A large number of foreign and domestic tourists keenly watch fishing using these nets. The fishermen should get some sops from government for promoting tourism indirectly, assert Fort Kochi residents.