Kerala: Call for kiosks at fishing harbours

Kochi: A workshop attended by various stakeholders from the fishing sector including marine scientists, fisher folks, law enforcement agencies and boat owners has mooted the idea of opening 24-hour kiosks at fishing harbours in the state for registering the boats and fishers going out to the sea. The measure has been proposed to keep the track of the boats and fishers going to the sea and returning.

The idea was suggested in the backdrop of confusion over the number of fishermen and boats out in the sea following the Ockhi disaster. The workshop was held jointly by Matsya Thozhilali Aikya Vedi and Cochin Long Line Boat and Gill Net Agents’ Association. Although 25 days have passed since the cyclone the whereabouts of 17 boats and over 180 fishermen are yet to be traced.       

According to Charles George of the Aikya Vedi the kiosk should be manual or in electronic format and the data should be vetted by police or marine enforcement agencies. He said a high-level meeting of marine enforcement and revenue authorities would be held on December 28 to address methods to ensure foolproof security for fisher folks. Around 300 fishermen attended the workshop.  

Scientists from Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute, Central Institute of Fisheries Technology, CIFNET and senior officials from police and marine enforcement took part in discussions. The workshop also discussed on the type of communication devises to be installed in fishing boats for emergency alerts. A dedicated telecommunication channel for the fishermen, use of radio, automatic identification system is among the ideas mooted in discussions.