Fishers Urge TN Government To Dredge Sethubavachathiram Port
Fishermen say three years without dredging has caused heavy siltation, leaving boats stranded in the sand.
Fishermen from Thanjavur district have urged the Tamil Nadu government to dredge the Sethubavachathiram fishing port, which has reportedly become heavily silted due to the lack of dredging over the past three years.
The fishermen raised the demand at a grievances day meeting held at Sethubavachathiram and presided over by Collector R. Revathi.
In a press release, A. Tajudeen, general secretary of the Tamil Nadu Meenavar Peravai, said a petition seeking immediate dredging of the port was submitted to the Collector.
“Dredging has not been carried out at the fishing port for the last three years, resulting in heavy siltation. As a result, fishermen’s boats get stuck in the sand. The government should take immediate steps to dredge the port,” Mr Tajudeen said.
There are currently around 140 mechanised boats and 200 country boats operating from Sethubavachathiram, with nearly one lakh people directly or indirectly dependent on fishing activities in the area.
The fishermen also sought government assistance to replace boats damaged during Cyclone Gaja. According to Mr Tajudeen, there were around 300 mechanised boats in the area before the cyclone. While some fishermen used government relief funds to purchase new boats, many others were forced to migrate to other districts after losing their livelihoods.
Another demand was to allow fishermen to purchase diesel from the Tamil Nadu State Apex Fisheries Cooperative Federation bunk at Sethubavachathiram. At present, fishermen have to travel around 7 km to the Tamil Nadu Fisheries Development Corporation’s diesel bunk at Mallipattinam to refuel their boats.
Tajudeen said the Collector assured the fishermen that their demands would be taken up with the state government and steps would be taken to address their grievances.
