Fisheries Minister J Mercykutty Amma criticises CPT for not compensating fishermen

KOCHI: Fisheries Minister J. Mercykutty Amma has criticised the Cochin Port Trust for not disbursing the compensation to the fishermen who have been affected by the Vallarpadam Transshipment Container Terminal. Addressing a meeting convened at Ernakulam Guest House on Friday to discuss the issues in the fisheries sector, the minister said that the Port Trust authorities were yet to hand over the compensation to those who had lost fish farms and fishing equipment for the project. The compensation to those who were evicted for the container road project also has not been given. She instructed district collector Muhammad Y. Safirulla to convene a meeting with the Port Trust chairman and secretary.

“If the meeting fails to resolve the stalemate, the government will initiate legal steps,” she said. The Port Trust has to give a compensation package of '2.05 crore in two phases to the fishermen who lost their means of livelihood. But, only Rs 27.42 lakh has been handed over to the fisheries department so far. The fishermen have alleged that the compensation amount is inadequate and that the eligible beneficiaries didn’t get the compensation. Based on their complaint, the minister has instructed Mulavukadud panchayat authorities to prepare a list of eligible beneficiaries and hand it over to the fisheries department. The meeting also discussed other topics like new norms for registration of fishing vessels. MLAs John Fernandez, Hibi Eden, fisheries director Dr. Karthikeyan, officials of Port Trust and Mulavukadu panchayat also attended it.