[5] Kocherry was instrumental in mobilizing more than ten million fishermen in South India, and efforts to stop factory fishing and use of mechanized trawls for the purpose.
[5] In 1981, Kocherry undertook an eleven-day fast with his associate Joyachan Antony demanding a ban on mechanized trawling during the monsoon season.
[12] In 1982, the National Fishworkers' Forum (NFF) was formed to further these causes, including organizing protests and fighting legal battles against large fleets and polluting industries.
That year, the Supreme Court ruled a case over the government's joint venture or deep sea fishing policy that envisaged to open India's waters to large commercial vessels, in the NFF's favour.
[14] In November 1998, Kocherry became the first Indian to be awarded a Pew Fellowship in Conservation and the Environment, which carried a purse of US$150,000, for his contribution for protecting marine life.
[14] A few days later, when the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests constituted the National Coastal Zone Management Authority, Kocherry was appointed one of its members for a two-year term.
[17] A vocal critic of globalization, Kocherry called it "the free movement of capital to generate profits for a few at the expense of the vast majority of people".