fishing community | SabrangIndia

400 academics & activists express solidarity with fish workers’ protest against Adani International Seaport at Vizhinjam, Kerala

Mon, 07 Nov 2022 09:19:47 +0000

Representative Image | Photo: PTI

The coastal fishing community in and around Trivandrum, the capital of Kerala has been involved in a prolonged struggle against the construction of the ongoing International seaport which is being built at Vizhinjam by Adani ports. Protesters have alleged that the port has resulted in coastal erosion leading to the disappearance of coasts and the destruction of houses in the fishing villages. The dredging in the port will result in the loss of local fishing habitats leading to the destruction of the livelihood of thousands of fishing families and their displacement from the coasts.

In 2017, Sabrangindia had carried a detailed report on how this Adani-owned port is estimated to cost a huge loss to the public exchequer and go the way of the Vallarpadam Container Terminal, which was commissioned in 2011 at a huge public cost and is today running at a loss.

As the coastal community’s sit-in protest continues against the distress caused by the Vizhinjam Adani port gathering solidarity and support at the state level, protesters have alleged that the corporate-backed media such as News 18, Janam TV, Desabhimani, Kerala Kaumudi are now resorting to blatant lies and misinformation against the protest and protesters. As a part of this concerted campaign, the statesment says that “attempts have been made to slander Ms Aleyama Vijayan who is the founder trustee of the feminist organisation Sakhi women’s resource centre and has been working for women’s empowerment for the past three decades, along with AJ Vijayan, who has been working as a trade unionist and researcher in the fisheries sector since 1980.”

It has accused that Sakhi, a women’s rights organisation based out of Thiruvananthapuram, which has no direct affiliations with the protest committee, is “receiving foreign contributions” for the protests. They have already issued a defamation suit against the media for spreading misinformation and rumours. Sigantories to this statement have said that the details on the Sakhi website show that all their activities are transparent. “We support this legal suit and wish this organisation to operate smoothly in the future,” it adds.

The rest of the statement is reproduced here:

“The attempt to portray the struggle as a foreign conspiracy through funding is malicious and an insult to the fishing community who is fighting against the port and its sponsors.

“We request that all people who believe in democracy protest against this false propaganda. This slander campaign is done together with attempts by vested groups to create communal issues and problems of law and order on the coast, to divide the fishing and host communities in the name of religion. We urge the government, masses and civil society groups to positively intervene to keep communal harmony and peace.

“The fisher folks in Vizhinjam, under the leadership of Thiruvananthapuram Latin Archdiocese, have been protesting for the last 105 days, raising seven demands, including stoppage of the construction of the seaport in Vizhinjam and a complete study on the impact and damages by the port by an independent team of experts including people representing the fisher community.

“The rest of the six demands from the formation are:

(1) Find a sustainable solution to coastal erosion on the Thiruvananthapuram coast due to the unscientific constructions in the sea, including that caused by the Vizhinjam port construction.

(2) Provide temporary rental accommodation to people whose houses were destroyed due to coastal erosion.

(3) Plan and implement reasonable policies to rehabilitate the people who have lost their land and houses.

(4) Intervene to revoke the kerosene price hike; provide subsidised kerosene following the neighbouring state Tamil Nadu model.

(5) Provide minimum wages to the fisher folks to compensate for the loss on the days of fishing weather warnings.

(6) Find sustainable solutions to the problems instead of temporary ones. The claim that all the demands have been more or less accepted by the government has been debunked by the Convener of the protest committee, Thiruvananthapuram Latin Archdiocese, Fr. Eugene Pereira, in a press conference on October 31st, 2022.

The statement also states that that, while it “..it is undemocratic that, instead of fulfilling their obligation to settle the strike, the ruling government is resorting to covert attempts to tarnish the repurtation coastal communities and overturn their struggle.

“We strongly condemn attempts by certain media houses to malign civil society organisations and vilify A J Vijayan, who has been researching and writing on the eco-social impacts, the unscientific nature of the project and the contract irregularities. He has been doing so since the period of the environmental impact study during the UDF regime, which initiated the Adani port project with special interest. We believe it is essential to have independent research and scientific studies on the impact of the port on coastal communities, and any such studies should be encouraged.

“We urge the government to settle the Vizhinjam issue urgently by arriving at a reasonable and sustainable solution and defending the rights of fishing and coastal communities.

The statement has been issued in the name of the Vizhinjam Struggle Solidarity Committee, Keralam Social Movements, Concerned Citizens Persons, Social Organizations

The signatories to the statement are:

1. Aflatoon, Samajwadi Jan Parishad

2. Ammu Abraham, FAOW & PUCL Maharashtra (E.C.)

3. Anand Patwardhan, Film Maker

4. Anjali Bharadwaj, Collective Delhi

5. Arundhati Dhuru, National Convenor, National Alliance of Peoples Movements

6. Ashok Choudhary/ Roma , All India Union of Forest Working People

7. Avinash Kumar , Former Director, Amnesty International India.

8. Aysha, Right to Food Campaign

9. Chandana Pusapati, Dakshin Foundation

10. Delhi Solidarity Group

11. Devaki Jain, Economist, Writer

12. Dr. John Dayal, Writer, Human Rights Activist

13. Dr. Ram Puniyani, National Solidarity Forum

14. Dr. Suneelam Ex MLA

15. Dr. Syeda Hammed, Former Member Planning Commission

16. Evita Das – Pakistan India Peoples’ forum for peace and democracy

17. G Devarajan, Gen Sec All India Forward Bloc

18. Gabriele Dietrich Movement for Womrn’s Rightss

19. Geeta Seshu, Co-Editor, Free Speech Collective

20. Gutta Rohith, Human Rights Forum

21. Indian Social Action Forum – INSAF

22. Joy Sinha – COLLECTIVE Delhi

23. K Babu Rao, HRF, President, Hyderabad City

24. K P Sasi, Activist Film Maker

25. K. G. Jagadeesan trustee Centre Gandhi Smark Nidhi

26. K. J. Joy, Forum for Policy Dialogue on Water Conflicts in India, Pune

27. K. Sajaya, Women & Transgender Orgs JAC, Hyderabad.

28. Kalyani Menon – Sen, Feminist researcher/activist

29. Krishnakant (NAPM, Gujarat)

30. Leena Dabiru, Anhad, Delhi

31. Madhu Bhushan, Women’s rights activist, Bangalore

32. Madhuri, Jagrit Adivasi Dalit Sangathan Madhya Pradesh

33. Medha Patkar, Narmada Bachavo Aandolan

34. Meera Sanghamitra (National Alliance of People’s Movements), NAPM

35. N.D.Pancholi, Citizens For Democracy, Delhi

36. Nityanand Jayaraman, Writer, Social Activist. Chennai Solidarity Group. Chennai

37. Pradip Chatterjee, National Convener, National Platform for Small Scale Fish

Workers

38. Priya Dharshini, Finanical Accountability Network India

39. Prof. S. P Udayakumar, Anti nuclear activist

40. Prof. Sandeep Pandey, Writer, Social Activist

41. Prafulla Samantara, Environmentalist, NAPM

42. Ranjit Sur, APDR

43. Sandeep Pandey Socialist Party (India)

44. Soumya Dutta, Bharat Jan Vigyan Jatha

45. Subhash Lomte, Swaraj India

46. Tapas Das, National Convenior, Nodi Bachao Jibon Bachao Andalon

47. Vidya Dinker, President, INSAF

48. Vihaan Vee – Ambedkarite, Queer Feminist Activist

49. Xavier Dias, Editor, Khan Kaneej Aur ADHIKAR (Mines minerals & RIGHTS)

50. Yash, Let India Breathe

51. Yugma Collective

52. A Sunil Dharan, Motilal Nehru College (Delhi University)

53. A.Suneetha, Independent Researcher, Hyderabad

54. Alaka Basu, Researcher

55. Amod Shah, PhD Researcher

56. Asha Achy Joseph, Dean, SH School of Communication, SH College, Thevara, Kochi

57. Brinelle Dsouza, Chairperson, Centre for Health and Mental Health, TISS

58. Chhaya Datar Ex-professor of Women’s Studies in TISS

59. Devika, feminist scholar

60. Dr . K.P Rammohan, Economist

61. Dr. K. G. Tara, Former Head, Disaster Management Centre

62. Dr. Karuna DW,

63. Dr. Mary George, Economist

64. Dr. P. A. Azeez, Salim Ali Centre For Ornithology And Natural History

65. Dr. T. G. Jacob

66. Frans Manjali, Prof. Linguistics, JNU

67. Hariprasath R, Researcher

68. Jashodhara Dasgupta, Independent Researcher

69. Kochurani Abraham, feminist theologian, Kerala

70. M. Dasan, Dalit Thinker

71. Maggie Allessu, Vidhyadeep college, Gujarat

72. Nandita Narain, Associate Professor, St. Stephen’s College, Delhi University College

73. Nivedita Menon, Professor JNU

74. Padma Velaskar ,Professor (Retd) TISS

75. Prof. Iris

76. Prof. Janaki abraham,

77. Prof. Kusum Joseph

78. Prof. Sanil V

79. Prof. Vida Sequeira (Retired)

80. Prof. Vindo Chandran

81. Rakhi Sehgal, Researcher, New Delhi

82. Rita Paes Retired Professor

83. Rohini Hensman, writer and researcher, Mumbai

84. Seethalakshmi, Independent Researcher and Activist

85. Shilpa Parthan, PhD student, University of Illinois Chicago

86. Shweta Wagh, Associate Professor, KRVIA. PhD researcher IIT Bombay

87. Soma K P, Independent researcher

88. Swati Birla, University of Massachusetts Amherst

89. Trisha Gupta, University of Oxford

90. Vineetha Venugopal, Researcher

Poets, writers and solidarity from Kerala Groups

91. B Rajeevan, Cultural critic

92. Binitha Thampi, Poet

93. C Radhakrishnan, Novelist

94. Damodar Prasad, Journalist

95. Dr. Ambikasuthan Mangad

Academicians / Writers

96. Fr. Jose Kaliekkal ,

97. Hameed Vaniyambalam, state president welfare party

98. Joseph Jude, Kerala Regional Latin Catholic Council (KRLCC) state vice-president

99. K Ajitha, Feminist activist, Anweshi

100. K. Sahadevan, writter

101. Kalpatta Narayan, writter

102. KG Sankarapilla (KGS), Poet

103. Kumar Kalanand Mani, Save the Western Ghats Movement

104. Kuripuzha Sreekumar, Poet

105. Pandavath Baburaj, Activist Film Maker

106. S Rajeevan, K Rail Virudha Jankeeya Samara Samiti

107. Sarath Cheloor, State Coordinator, NAPM- Keralam

108. Savithri Rajeevan, Poet

109. Sridhar Radhakrishnan , Kerala Paristhithi Aikya Vedhi

110. V Dinakaran , Akhila Kerala Dheevara Sabha

111. Vijayaraghavan Cheliya, State Convenor, NAPM Keralam

Solidarity from across the country

112. A.K. Shibu raj

113. Abha Bhaiya, Jagori Rural, HP

114. Adv K V. Bhadrakumari

115. Adv Pyoli Swatija

116. Adv. John Joseph

117. Adv. Joseph Paull

118. Adv. Vinod Payada

119. AK Jayasree

120. Alaka Basu

121. Allwyn Dsouza

122. Amit Singh

123. Amrita Shodhan

124. Anil E.P

125. Anita Cheria, Bangalore

126. Anitha Ruban

127. Anitha Shanti Treewalk

128. Anna SJC Social Activist.Karnataka

129. Annette Fernandes MBBS

130. Annie Director

131. Annie Jaise, Kerala

132. Anthony Dias

133. Anuradha Pati, Bangalore

134. Aparna, Social worker

135. Aruna Gnanadason, Chennai

136. Asha G, Trivandrum

137. Astrid Lobo, Mumbai

138. Fr. Baby Chalil

139. Balkis Bano, Trishur

140. Beatrice Joseph

141. Berguman Thomas

142. Bhubaneswar

143. Bittu K R, Karnataka Janashakti

144. Brinda Adige, Bengaluru

145. C.S. Murali shankar

146. Cecilia Crasta

147. Celine Paramundayil MMS, Kerala

148. Chakradhar, Samalochana

149. Clara Mendonca, social worker

150. Clare M. Therese, Chennai

151. clare muthukattol

152. Cynthia Stephen, Bangalore

153. Cyrilla Chakalakal Mumbai

154. Debaprasad Ray, Secretary, Lohia Academy, Bhubaneswar

155. Deejao Pathrose

156. Deepa V, Delhi

157. Devika, Advocate

158. Dorothy, Social Activist

159. Dr. C. Jayakumar, Thanal

160. Dr. C. Surendranath

161. Dr. E. Unnikrishnan

162. Dr. Joyce Kaithakottil, Activist for Justice

163. Dr. Mangesh Sawant Environmentalist

164. Dr. Mercy Thomas Facilitator Nirmal Jyothi ITI

165. Elizabeth Vadakekara MMS, Kochi, Kerala

166. Elsa Muttathu, Chenn

167. Flavia Agnes, Mumbai

168. Flory Menezes

169. Fr Benny, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala

170. Fr Dr Jose D. Maliekal SDB, Telengana

171. Fr Joseph, Vicar, St Joseph Church Konoor Ekm Diocese

172. Fr Thomas

173. Fr Varghese Assin, Manager, St Francis Assisi School, Nedumbassery..

174. Fr. Agustine Vattoli

175. Fr. Deepak Anto

176. Fr. George Thenadikulam, Kerala

177. Fr. Kurian Kurisunkal, Mulanthuruthy

178. Fr. Lawrence

179. Francis Xavier, supporter

180. Freny Manecksha

181. General Secretary, AIFB Odisha , Bhubaneswar

182. George Mathew

183. Glavious Alexander

184. Gopinath Haritha

185. Govind Kelkar, GenDev, Gurgaon

186. Gracy Kallookulangara

187. Growth Watch

188. Hasina Khan, Bebaak Collective

189. Hazel D’Lima, CRI, ICWM

190. Hazel Lobo, Mumbai

191. Holiram Terang. Political activist.

192. Immaculate.F.

193. Indira Hirway, Centre for Development Alternatives,

194. Jabeena Irshad

195. Jacob Naluparayil, Kochi, Kerala

196. Jacqueline Rumao. Jeevan vidya.

197. Jaison Coopur

198. James Dayalaya

199. Janaki Nair, JNU

200. Jashodhara Dasgupta, Delhi

201. Jesmine Fernandes

202. Jessica Prakash-Richard, Chennai

203. Jessin SJC

204. Jessy Mole Sebastian, Changanacherry, Kerala

205. Jibin Robin

206. Jinu Sam Jacob

207. Joanna, Social Worker

208. John Dsouza, Mumbai , Documentalist

209. John Peruvanthanam

210. Johnson Puthenveettil, Director, KLCA, Alleppey Diocese

211. Jolly Chirayath

212. Jose Therattil

213. Joseph Kannamkulam

214. Joseph Maniangat

215. Joseph Victor Edwin, Delhi

216. Josephine Rozario

217. Joycia , New Delhi

218. Jubin Jacob, Kanjirappally, Kerala

219. Julia George, Adv, Mumbai

220. Jyoti Ranjan Mahapatra

221. K. Ajitha

222. K. C. Sreekumar

223. K. Ramachandran

224. K. Sahadevan

225. K.G. Jagadeeshan

226. K.M. Thomas

227. K.P. Sethunath

228. K.P.Thomas, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala

229. Kalyani S.

230. Karavali Karnataka Janabhivriddhi Vedike.

231. KB Kannampilly

232. KCR Raja, New Delhi

233. KhalidaParveen

234. KM Sebastian, Eluru, A.P

235. Kochurani Abraham, Kanjirappally, Kerala

236. Kusum Tripathi

237. Lakshmi Lingam, Hyderabad

238. Lanusenla Bangalore

239. Leela Soloman

240. Leena Abraham, Mumbai

241. LEVIN

242. Lisa Pires, Goa

243. Lumina da Costa, citiizen of Indiaendorse

244. M D Varghese, a freelance Eco-Social Development Advisor

245. M. Dasan, Dalit Thinker

246. M. Sulfath

247. M.D. Alice, Kochi, Kerala

248. M.K. George

249. Madhuri Mondal, programme officer

250. Magdalene Almeida

251. Mahu Bhushan, Bangalore

252. Manju Kulapuram, Activist, Delhi

253. Manju Kulapuram, Delhi

254. Manoj Kedaram, Social Worker

255. Manu

256. Marcia DCunha ICWM Thane Maharashrea

257. Marcia DCunha, Mumbai

258. Mary Vaiphei, Assam

259. Mathew Sebastian

260. Mavis Russell, Gurgoan

261. Meera RGS, Mysore

262. Mekronyi-u Thele, Nagaland

263. Mercy Alexander

264. Merlyn Dsa, Mumbai

265. Metti Amirtham,Tindivanam, Tamil Nadu

266. Mini Bedi

267. Mirsad Rahman

268. Moksha Mary- Anmol NGO Co-ordinator

269. Monisha Behal, NEN

270. Ms. Vanitha D’Souza

271. Mujahid Nafees, Ahmedabad, Gujarat

272. Muralidharan K, political activist

273. Muthapan

274. N Sarojini, SAMA, Delhi

275. N. Subramanyan

276. Namrata Lunia

277. Nancy Vaz, Mumbai

278. Nancy Vaz, Mumbai

279. Nandita Gandhi, Akshara Centre, Mumbai

280. Naseer Syed, Bangalore

281. Neerja Rajeev Prasad. Nagpur

282. Nikita Naidu, Climate Action

283. Nirmala

284. Nita Arvind, Scrum Master

285. Niti Saxena, Lucknow

286. Noela J Dias

287. Noella de Souza, ICWM, IWTF, CRI.

288. Noella de Souza, Mumbai

289. Om Prakash Singh, Cuttack

290. P k Sasidharan

291. P.T. John

292. Padmaja Shaw

293. Paniyadima John

294. Philomena D’Souza, Satyashodhak, Mumbai

295. Philomena….Provincial

296. Prabhat Sharan, Journalist

297. Prajval Shastri, astrophysicist

298. Prasad Chacko, Social Worker, Ahmedabad

299. Preeti Mehra, independent journalist, New Delhi

300. Prema Chowallur SCC

301. Prerana Gawde, Senior Programme Associate

302. Promod Puzankara

303. Pushpa Parmar

304. Pyoli, Advocate

305. Raj Shekhar, Right to Food Campaign

306. Rajesh

307. Rajnish Gambhir All India Union of Forest Working People

308. Raju kalathil,Advocate

309. Ramnarayan, Independent Ecologist

310. Raynah Marise Braganza Passanha, Pune

311. Renita

312. Rev. Indira Paul, Chennai

313. Rev. Raju P George

314. Rita Manchanda, Independent Rights Consultant

315. Robert Joseph, Teacher

316. Robi Arayakkandy. CPI(ML).

317. Rohini, Writer

318. Rosalind Elaiyarani

319. Rosamma George

320. Rosamma Thomas

321. Rose Mary Tirkey ( Social Worker)

322. Roshmi Goswami, Shillong.

323. Runu Chakraborty

324. S. Rajeevan

325. Sabina Martins

326. Sachin Chavan,

327. Salahudheen Ayyoobi, Writer

328. Sandeep kaithamparambat, artist

329. Sandeep Ravindranath

330. Sandhya Balasubramanian, Member – Growthwatch India

331. Santana Pereira, Sahayini NGO

332. Santosh Sharma

333. Sarah Mathews. Managing Trustee, Sankalp Women’s Support Alliance

334. Sarath Keeraleeyam

335. Sarojini N, Public Health Practitioner

336. SAshalatha

337. Seema Bhaskaran

338. Shalini Gera, Advocate

339. Shalom Gauri, student

340. Sharad Lele, ATREE

341. Shivsunder

342. Shweta Tripathy, SRUTI, New Delhi

343. Sister Poonam cj.

344. Sr Aruna Castelino /Director of Auxilium Out Reach

345. Sr Maria Shirsath, Teacher

346. Sr. Elphina Rodrigues

347. Sr. Mary Jacintha. Daughters of Mary Help of Christians Congregation

348. Sr. Melusina Colaco – religious

349. Sr. Rita D Souza – prov adminstrator

350. SR. Rita Fernandes

351. Sr. Thelma Paiva

352. Sr.Anita gracias animated

353. Sr.Marina Kalathil

354. Sreedevi S Kartha

355. Sreekala MG, Goa

356. Sridhar Radhakrishnan

357. Stella Baltazar fmm, provincial

358. Sudhir Pattanaik, Editor , The Samadrusti

359. Suneeta Dhar Activist

360. Sunirose, I. P

361. Sunny Paikada

362. Suresh Melettukochy.

363. Suresh Rathaur mmu

364. Susan Joseph, Social Worker

365. Swarna bhat, social Activist

366. Swatija Paranjape

367. T N Sushama, Freelance writer

368. Tamizharasi

369. Thresia

370. V.S. Anil Kumar

371. Vaishnavi- independent labor rights activist & journalist

372. Vandita, Morarka (founder and CEO, One Future Collective)

373. Vaneeta khristi

374. Vanita Mukherjee

375. Varsha Bhargavi, Where Are The Women Collective

376. Veena Maruthur

377. Vijayan Punnathur Retiree

378. Vishesh Guru, anthropologist

https://sabrangindia.in/article/opposition-vizhinjam-port-project-must-be-seen-wider-context-protecting-coastal-ecology-and

https://www.sabrangindia.in/article/why-we-must-say-no-vizhinjam-project

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Lockdown 2020’s impact on migrant fishworkers will last longer than the season did

Fri, 01 May 2020 12:36:32 +0000

This May Day, around 4000 fishermen have reached home to their villages on the Andhra Pradesh coast. These migrant fishworkers were stuck on their boats anchored on the Gujarat coast, where they work as contractual labourers during fishing season. As the national Covid-19 lockdown was announced without warning, they, like lakhs of other migrant workers, were stuck without work and unable to make their way home inland. It took days of negotiations between the two state governments to enable the workers to return home. While they had been supplied basic food, and water by their contractors the fishworkers, had been living under difficult conditions on the cramped boats.

While the boat owners have faced massive losses, the migrant workers of Andhra Pradesh stranded on the boats faced great mental and emotional stress too. Two of them died while waiting to go home. After a month-long ordeal they finally boarded buses and braved the long journey by road to get home.

Tragically yet another death of a fishworker from Andhra Pradesh was reported from Mumbai on April 29. He too had died on the fishing boat in which he was stranded. This, once again highlights the rising human cost in the fisheries sector has been forced to pay as the Covid-19 lockdown continues.

Kori Jaganathulu (35), a native of Andhra’s Srikakulam District is said to have died of kidney failure as he was not able to get medication due to the lockdown. According to information shared by the NFF around 120 migrant fishworkers from Andhra Pradesh are still stranded on board their fishing boats in the village of Uttan Pali, Mira Bhayandar, Maharashtra.

According to NFF, Kori had arrived in Mumbai three months ago and soon developed a kidney problem. Before the lockdown was enforced he was undergoing dialysis. As his condition did not improve, Kori’s friends hired a private ambulance to take him back to his village. They reached the Karnataka-Maharashtra border on March 26, but since the lockdown had been announced the ambulance was turned back. The NFF says that Kori had been living on the boat since, without access to medical care, and finally succumbed to the illness. His friends told NFF representatives that they collected wood for the pyre and cremated Kori’s body themselves as no one else stepped forward to help.

The NFF also shared that two Covid-19 cases have been reported from Uttan Pali village and fishing vessels had been prohibited from going back to sea. The fishworkers remain stranded on their boats without much access to health facilities. According to the NFF, here too the boat owners may now be exploring the possibility of making arrangements to repatriate the workers back to their native states. It is said that between 1200-1500 workers from Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, and Jharkhand work on boats in this area.

Even those workers who have now been sent home from Gujarat, will have to deal with bigger challenges once they emerge from the 14-day self quarantine period. Most of them have barely managed to work in Gujarat, first due to bad weather, and then in the wake of the Covid-19 lockdown.

The workers stranded in Maharashtra have been working for 3 months before the lockdown was announced. They are yet to receive the wages for this period, though it has been promised by the owners. “They are however, not going to be paid their wages for the period during the lockdown; though entitled to these wages as per directions from the GoI, they are not demanding these. Their immediate demand in the aftermath of the death is to be repatriated to Andhra Pradesh at the earliest,” said the NFF.

Their stress on this demand is high as they now know that the migrant fish workers who were stranded in Gujarat have reached home in Andhra Pradesh. As the Ministry of Home Affairs has slowly allowed the migrants to return home, fishworkers from other states have begun to demand that they be sent back to their native villages.

However they too will face an uncertain financial future once they get back home. Some may have meagre savings, but most will not be able to resume work as in a month or so the seasonal Monsoon bans on fishing will come into effect along the coastline. This is when the real challenge begins.

“Registered fishworkers have a savings and relief scheme which the state govt provides funds during the monsoon ban period,” said Anil T varghese Delhi forum, Secretariat of National Fishworkers Forum. It is not known if this fund will be extended to all fishworkers, including migrant fish workers, all of whom have been severely impacted by the Covid19 national lockdown.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s next address is expected on Saturday May 2 at 10 AM, as the May 3 deadline of the lockdown nears.

Privatisation of fishing industry on the cards

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Covid-19: Ban on fishing, fisherfolk unemployed

Thu, 26 Mar 2020 14:35:05 +0000

The Karnataka government advised fishermen of the coastal district of Karnataka to not venture into the sea until the Covid-19 situation improves. In a bid to prevent people gathering at Dhakkes (fish landing points), the Mangaluru Trawl Boat Owners Association President Nithin Kumar told The Hindu that to ensure that gatherings don’t take place, diesel would not be made available to mechanized vessels there.

The Tamil Nadu government too banned imposed a ban on trawlers and fishing boats till March 31. Director of fisheries, KS Sameeran told The Times of India that the boats at sea would be allowed to return but their catch would not be auctioned off as done usually.

This has led to a loss of income for many small-time fishermen said South Indian Fishermen Welfare Association President, K Bharathi. He also mentioned that there was no restriction placed on the number of people visiting fish markets in North Chennai.

In Odisha too, 5,000 fishermen’s lives now hang in the balance as the 21-day lockdown has come into place. Not only have the fishermen been grappling with the problem of dwindling prices, one reason being the ban on public gatherings like marriages, but they also have no option but to sell their catch at low prices due to not having any cold storage options.

The Marine Products Exports Development Authorities told the Hindu Business Line that exports, which were supposed to $7 billion for the country this year, were hit due to the virus scare. The halt of international flights too has added to woes of the industry.

Alex K Ninan, President of Seafood Exporters Association of India – Kerala region, said, “Many of the export markets such as Japan and the US are buying selectively. The European market is totally cut off, while there is only negligible procurement from the Chinese market.”

In such a crisis, with traditional fishermen risking to lose their livelihoods till the time the virus is not contained, it is imperative that the government provide them with financial and other assistance to ensure that their daily lives which depend on fishing, don’t take a hit.

Fishing ban due to security reasons

On March 20, the President of India imposed a uniform ban on fishing by all fishing vessels in the Indian Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) beyond territorial waters on the East Coast, including the Andaman and Nicobar Island for 61 days beginning April 15 to June 14 and West Coast including the Lakshadweep Islands for 61 days, beginning June 1 to July 31 for conservation and effective management of fishery resources and also for sea safety reasons.

It exempted traditional non-motorized units from this ban.

The Bangalore Mirror had reported that China had begun deploying underwater drones apart from hydrographic survey and oceanic research ships in the Indian Ocean Region. This concerned the Indian authorities as such surveys aren’t just taken for deep-sea mining and other commercial activities, but are also critical for submarine and anti-submarine warfare operations.

Indian churches put anti-Covid measures in place, some move services online

Working People’s Charter demands provisions for the informal sector to fight Covid-19

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National Fishworkers Forum launch month-long national campaign against CRZ 2019 regulations

Wed, 27 Feb 2019 08:36:37 +0000

NFF in association with Goenchea Raponkarancho Ekvott will kick off its first protest at Lohia Maidan, Margao on Feb 23 followed by National protest on February 25 at Gujarat, Pondicherry, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, February 26 at Tamil Nadu, March 9 in Kerala, February 27 at Odisha and March 23 at Maharashtra and West Bengal.

Goa: National Fishworkers Forum (NFF) has declared a month-long national campaign from February 23rd to March 23rd, 2019 in all coastal states against the new Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) Notification 2019 issued by the Government of India on January 19 2019.

NFF in association with Goenchea Raponkarancho Ekvott will kick of its first protest at Lohia Maidan, Margao on Feb 23 followed by National protest on February 25 at Gujarat, Pondicherry, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, February 26 at Tamil Nadu, March 9 in Kerala, February 27 at Odisha and March 23 at Maharashtra and West Bengal.

“The National Fishworkers Forum (NFF) has strongly protested against the new Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) Notification issued by the Government of India on January 19, which drastically dilutes the provisions for protecting the coastal ecosystem. The NFF says this will eventually destroy the livelihoods of fisherfolk along the coast of India as 7500km coastline and 14500km of river line will be concretized for Sagarmala projects. Taking strong objection to the lack of consideration given to fishing community views, the NFF has vowed to fight the new notification. It has demanded the withdrawal of the notification and its replacement with a new law by the Parliament, enacted after an elaborate public debate and discussion. In this connection, the NFF has declared a month-long national campaign from 23 February to 23 March 2019,” the group said in a Facebook post on February 4.

Olencio Simoes Vice Chairperson of NFF has appealed to each and every citizen of Goa to attend the national protest at Lohia Maidan on February 23 as the state is heading towards major catastrophe as the new CRZ notification 2019 will undo all special consideration which Goa had in the CRZ notification 2011, Herald Goa reported.

The CRZ 2011 in section V (3) clearly stated the Government of Goa shall notify the fishing villages by which reconstruction, repair works of the structures of local communities including fishermen community would have been permissible in CRZ. The eco-sensitive low-lying areas which are influenced by tidal action known as khazan lands shall be mapped. The mangroves along such as khazan land shall be protected and a management plan for the khazan land prepared and no developmental activities shall be permitted in the khazan land. Sand dunes, the beach stretches along the bays and creeks shall be surveyed and mapped, the report said.

Corals and coral reefs and associated biodiversity, mudflats, salt marshes, turtle nesting grounds at Mandrem, Morjim, Galgiba and Agonda, horseshoe crabs’ habitats, seagrass beds, nesting grounds of birds, areas or structures of archaeological importance and heritage sites, all these eco-sensitive areas which had to be mapped and surveyed in the Coastal Zone Management Plans (CZMPs) will be now open for haphazard development in the CRZ notification 2019.

Agnelo Rodrigues President of Goenchea Raponkarancho Ekvott has said this is a desperate attempt by the government to push Sagarmala plans which will concretize the entire 105 km of Coastline of Goa and 180 km of river line of Goa, the report quoted.

Olencio Simoes stated the central government and the state government has purposely confused the people of Goa by inserting a new clause in section 2.3.2 CRZ-III B of the new CRZ notification 2019 that if the population density of Goa is less than 2161 per square kilometre, as per 2011 census base then the NDZ would be 200 mts and if the population density is more than 2161 per square kilometre then the NDZ would be 50 mts, the report said.

NFF and GRE called it a bluff as the previous notification has been already amended 37 times and did not think there was a guarantee that the state or central government would give them an assurance section 2.3.2 CRZ III B would not be amended.

“Apart from ignoring basic tenets of policy-making, where the communities are also an important part, the BJP-led central government did away with the need for approval from the ministry of law and justice on the draft version of subordinate legislation. It deemed that a one-time review by the law ministry at the time of finalisation of a policy was enough. Accordingly, the draft CRZ law was not viewed by the law ministry and their inputs were not even asked for,” they said in a statement.

“NFF strongly believes the government has ignored maintaining a well-demarcated hazard line and factoring in the effects of climate change on sea levels. Rather than having a policy which improves the lives of the coastal communities and protects the environment, the CRZ 2019 will pave the route for a more disastrous effect where the coastlines will be even more vulnerable. The CRZ 2019 is merely giving more access to the corporate-led lop-sided development where the fish workers, their livelihoods and the environment is completely ignored,” Times of India reported the forum as saying.

“It’s just an eyewash as the government cannot put the new CRZ notification 2019 in force until they complete the Coastal Zone Management Plans (CZMPs) as per The NGT order on Original Application Nos. 11/2014 and 424 of 2016 issued on 22nd November 2017. So once the CZMPs is complete the new notification will be in force and the government will certainly amend the notification and will reduce NDZ to the entire state to 50mts, to the detriment of the coastal communities. Therefore, NFF n GRE has demanded the central and state government to withdraw the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) Notification 2019 with immediate effect,” they said.

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Fishworkers Demand Action against Trawler, Captain that Hit Fishing Vessel: Kerala

Fri, 16 Jun 2017 05:51:03 +0000

THE National Fish workers Forum has urged Shipping Minister to launch legal proceedings against the owner, Captain and crew of the Panama registered cargo vessel which had hit a fishing boat off Kochi, killing two persons. In a letter to the Shipping Minister, a copy of which was released to the media here, Forum national chairperson Narendra R Patil and General Secretary T Peter also said cargo ships and foreign fishing vessels should not be allowed in Indian coastal waters.

The nationwide forum has also demanded that adequate compensation should be paid to the families of the fishermen who had lost their lives and fishing boat and implements which had suffered severe damage in the collision should be restored.

Among other demands is that the Indian Navy and Coast guard should be directed to protect fishermen who put out to sea, the forum said adding free medical aid should be provided to the injured fishermen and their loss should be compensated. The cargo vessel, Amber L, had collided with the fishing boat on June 11 at 2.30 am. While two fishermen drowned, one was missing and 11 others had been rescued.

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Sagarmala Port Project is a Noose in the Neck of Coastal Communities, Fisher People Oppose Move

Mon, 21 Nov 2016 09:59:58 +0000

November 21, World Fisheries Day is observed will see a massive rally of fisher people from different parts of the country at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar, against the ‘‘Ocean Grabbing’ policies of the Modi regime. National security too was a concern as many of these ports are being privatised and run the risk of being security threats, the forums said

The National Fishworkers’ Forum & National Alliance of People’s Movements will join hands to fight the destructive port & corridor based development model

Bringing into sharp focus, the ambitious –and allegedly ill-thought move of the Modi government to usher in high-cost port infrastructure development, especially of the Sagarmala project in Andhra Pradesh, a two-day national consultation on ‘Sagarmala’, just concluded in Delhi raises questions over the move. More than one lakh fish workers will participate in a series of protest actions against the move. The moot question is, will the media cover these protests?

Fishworkers and Fishing Communities to be Affected
Addressing the critical issues and concerns out of National Perspective Plan under the implementation for Sagarmala and Industrial Corridors along the Indian coastline, the National Fishworkers Forum (NFF) and National Alliance of People’s Movements (NAPM) leadership asserted that such projects were being approved without any thought going into the effects on the fishing community who are settled all along the coasts. The original Sagarmala plan articulated under former PM Mr. A.B Vajpayee has been modified with large scale land and ocean grabbing, displacing the people and their right to life, livelihood and dignity. Dangerous levels of ecological devastation has also been accelerated which is being sidelined in this massive push for development.

The ill effects of the Enayam port, an upcoming port in Tamil Nadu, were also showcased, especially the largescale displacement of persons from a thickly populated coastal district. The Vizhinjam port, already handed over to the Adani group (ironically even by the Left Front government carrying on a policy put in place by the Congress-led UDF!!), and which is likely to swallow up the entire coastline, is being vigorously opposed by the fishing community in Thiruvananthapuram district. Similarly, the expansion of the Kamraj Ennoore port, in Tamil Nadu, has already been opposed by community and experts alike. The democratic demand for thorough viability studies and that these be made public, as also the consent and involvement of the local community during the planning of such projects, has been high-lighted. The meet demanded an immediate cessation of all construction related activities must be done.

The Sagarmala project is primarily aimed at developing ports, transport through waterways and promote shipping, in other words it is just a port-based development model. However, a port-based development of multiple projects intended at bringing in foreign currency, should be understood differently from coastal development.

Serious concerns are being raised about the environmental effects on the coasts with issues like coastal erosion, coastal accretion as well as severe problems of dredging and the effects on the sea bed due to this. It is a fact that construction of breakwaters is leading to such disturbance in the ocean current that fishworkers are not able to go into the sea to fish. Moreover, the massive increase in ports and coming in of huge projects under Sagarmala is not in coordination with the requirement and the feasibility of having a huge number of ports.

Fishworkers from Kutch, Gujarat highlighted the severe effects of the Adani port and Adani, Tata and OPG thermal power plants in the Mundra area on the traditional small fishermen who have faced detrimental effects on their livelihoods. It was also mentioned that Adani acquired huge amounts of land on the coastline for the Mundra SEZ first, and caused all kinds of environmental violations. The most shocking has been the ease with which over 2500 acres of mangroves were removed and land filling was undertaken by Adani, with impunity. These projects have also brought out severe effects on the marine ecology where up to 25 kms of coastline you can find dead fish because of the massive amounts of toxins being released into the estuaries.

‘Sagarmala’ needs serious national assessment, due to varied level of complexities. The industrial corridors, the economic corridors, smart cities, coastal investment regions like PCPIR and Sagarmala are all a part of the larger plan for industrialization, which will destroy India’s vulnerable coastline.

De-monetization Hits the Fisher People
The leaders also noted that the NDA Government’s demonetisation effort, under the pretext of curtailing black money, is hurting the fishing community across India – other than many other formal and informal production sectors. Without scientifically assessed reasons and a detailed cost-benefit analysis, it is scary that the Central Government has gone ahead with such a scheme, jeopardising the lives of the majority Indians, to catch a minority engaged in black money and illegal transactions.

The NFF and the NAPM will be taking forward their struggles on these issues with further discussions at the NFF General Body in Tuticorin (December 9 and 10, 2016) and the NAPM National Convention in Patna (December 2-4, 2016).

The Campaign Points are

The NDA II Government is trying to fool the coastal people by unviable projects
Sagarmala will effectively promote real estate projects
Joint actions planned by people’s movements in the entire coastal stretch between Gujarat and West Bengal
More than One lakh of Fishworkers to participate in the series of actions
NFF to hold Parliament Rally onNovember 21, 2016, on World Fisheries Day
Coastal Yatra(s0 being planned by affected people from ten coastal states
Consultation with communities demanded, to suit legitimate development needs in coastal areas
“Privatisation and handing over of ports to companies like Adani will threaten India’s national national security”
Fishworkers demand withdrawal of Sagarmala project
Government should roll back the ‘Demonetisation’ policy, which has caused immense hardships to the coastal people and is hardly offering any scientific solution to the actual black money and corruption issue

(Issued on behalf of NFF: M. Ilango (Chairperson), Narendra Patil (Gen Secretary) and T. Peter (Secretary) NAPM: Rajendra Ravi (National Convener) and Madhuresh Kumar (National Organiser)
The Sagarmala project is being heavily promoted by business newspapers and publications. The Economic Times reports that “Sagarmala envisages port led development of the country that would include establishing new transshipment port, creating dedicated coastal berths ports for coastal shipping, setting up storage capacities at origin-destination ports to shorten turnaround time and developing adequate ship-repair facilities in the maritime states.

The government has prepared a Rs 5 lakh crore plan, including private investment, to implement the Sagarmala project. More recently, the same paper stated that, “To give a push to port-led economic development under its ambitious Sagarmala project, the government today approved incorporation of Sagarmala Development Company under the Companies Act with Rs 1,000 crore as initial authorised share capital.

"The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has approved the incorporation of Sagarmala Development Company (SDC) under the Companies Act, 2013," an official statement said. Government to fast-track green clearances for Sagarmala project, too.

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