Kakinada: To make sea voyage safe and hassle-free, the state government will provide Distress Alert Transmitter kits to fishermen with boats. The DAT will help them alert the Coast Guard personnel so that they can begin rescue measures immediately. During a cyclone in June, the fishermen faced difficulty in reaching the shore and their whereabouts could not be traced by government agencies. Nine fishermen died at sea and another seven fishermen are still missing.
Another six fishermen reached Bangladesh and later were brought back to their native village Huku-mpet. At present the MS Swaminathan Research Foundation with the help of INCOIS is giving information to the fishermen of location of fish in the sea. But, that is possible only within a radius of 10 to 15 km. Beyond this, the information cannot be conveyed to the fishermen. The DAT has round-the-clock satellite link. In case of emergency, the crew can contact the marine-related government agencies and seek help and guidance.
“The device has four buttons. When the fishermen press the buttons, it indicates to the officials the condition of the fishermen such as the boat catching fire, health status of fishermen, the condition of boat etc,” said deputy director of fisheries V.V. Rao.
He said that the kits have been distributed to the fishermen with cent per cent subsidy. The boat owners have been given training on the use of the device. But, the fishermen say that the training should be given to the crew of boat, and boat owners as the fishermen venture into the sea only because of the boat owner. ICG official Sravan Kumar said that the fishermen should make use of the device to get timely assistance and pass the communication to the officials.
