The traditional Chinese dip net is symbolic of Kerala and is a major tourist attraction. These nets are operated along the banks of the lakes in the state, especially the Vembanad lake. It is categorized into three type i.e. big, medium and small. The economic value generated by the Chinese dip nets operated in the Vembanad lake was estimated using market price approach. The willingness-to-pay (WTP) is taken to be equal to market price of fish and shrimp catch and this was used as an indicator of the true value of a resource. The estimation of economic value generated from the Chinese dip net operations in Vembanad lake was about Rs.32.98 crores per annum, which gives livelihood to approximately around 4500 family beneficiaries.

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