Socio-economic Condition of Coastal People Involved in Kuchia Catching in South-Western Region of Bangladesh

The study was carried to create a better understanding about the socio-economic condition of coastal communities involved in kuchia catching. The study area was Paikgacha Upazila under Khulna district and its two large markets; Paikgacha kuchia market and Kopilmony kuchia market. From the study area, 56 kuchia catchers were selected randomly which was 12% of total fishermen community. Data were collected over twelve months from January to December, 2012 by interviewing kuchia catcher at Paikgacha. The socio-economic condition of kuchia catchers is very bad. The study showed that the highest percentage (50%) of kuchia catchers belong to the age group of 31-40 years. From the survey, it was found that 89.29% of kuchia catchers were Hindu, while only 10.71% were Muslim. The highest percentage (46.42%) of kuchia catchers were found to be educated at the level of class one to two. It was observed that the highest percentage (42.86%) of the catchers had 6-7 members in their family. Highest number of Kuchia catchers (89.29%) were found to be dependent on village doctors. The study showed that the highest percentage (42.86%) of Kuchia catchers earned Tk. 30-60/day by selling their collected kuchias.