Fishermen announce indefinite strike from July 8; traders do not pay them a fair price for their catch

Fishermen’s associations in Rameswaram have announced an indefinite strike on Monday, demanding that the Tamil Nadu government intervene and support them by giving them a fair price for their catch.

Speaking to reporters on Saturday, fisherman leader Sagayam said that around 700 mechanised boats set off from Rameswaram to the Palk Strait for fishing. Directly and indirectly, around 5,000 fishermen and others depend on fishing. The fishermen spend between Rs 200,000 and Rs 100,000 annually on repairs to their boats and venture out to sea to repay loans to debtors.

However, of late, traders have not been paying a fair price for the fishermen’s catch. Almost every time a boat returned to land, the owner suffered a loss of Rs 20,000 to Rs 35,000 due to poor pricing. As a result, losses piled up and fishermen were facing mounting debts, he said, adding that traders were procuring varieties like ‘Iral’, ‘Kanavoi’ and ‘Nandu’ at a very low price.

During the annual 61-day fishing ban, the price of these varieties was around Rs 350 per kg, while traders were buying ‘Kanavoi’ at Rs 250 per kg. This was unfair and the fishermen were disappointed.

To solve the problem, the fisherman leader said, government intervention is the only way out to get them out of debt. By setting a support price mechanism, traders cannot dictate terms and sell the products at paltry prices, Mr Sagayam said, adding that to avoid losses, fishermen have decided to stop fishing indefinitely from Monday (July 8).

The fishermen leaders have submitted a detailed memorandum to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin, Fisheries Minister Anitha Radhakrishnan and District Collector B Vishnu Chandran, he added.

Pamban fishermen are upset

As boat fishermen of the coastal district fight for the release of fishermen imprisoned in Sri Lankan prisons and their confiscated boats, the recent announcement of an indefinite boycott of the work of the mechanised boat fishermen of Rameswaram may force the authorities to talk.

Pamban fishermen have announced an indefinite strike to protest the arrest. They had already demonstrated on Friday and on Saturday the fishermen leaders announced that they would intensify their protests in the coming days if their demands were not met.