Kerala: Kalumangothi Mohammed saved six lives, still awaits relief

KOCHI: He has been running from pillar to post for nearly 12 years to get relief for the damage he suffered while going for a daring human act in the sea off Minicoy in Lakshadweep. But the fisherman Kalumangothi Mohammed aged 50 is tired and dejected that no authority in Lakshadweep administration responded positively to his request. It was on July 29, 2004, during the peak of Monsoon that Mohammed and his friend Domfandage Ibrahim rescued the tug M.T. India and her six crew members from the swirling waves that almost capsized the vessel.

“We were returning after fishing in the outer sea. While we were just entering through the Salumagu entrance, we saw the tug in trouble and the crew members desperately shouting for help. Immediately we swung into action and in a rescue operation lasting two hours against the rough seas, we managed to take the tug out when another tug Azad of the Port Department arrived. But in the process of the rescue, my country boat ‘Gabli’ and its outboard engine were damaged beyond repair,” says Mohammed.

However, ever since this happened, it had been difficult for Mohammed to engage in fishing during off-season. “Despite my repeated pleas to the Lakshadweep administration for compensation, nothing has happened so far. Former President A.P.J Abdul Kalam’s office also intervened at one point unsuccessfully. Even now the matter is pending with the Port Officer as he is the authority over M.T. Indira,” said Muhammed. “If this is the treatment being meted out to fishermen, none would dare to save souls in distress in deep sea,” he added.

When contacted, Lakshadweep MP Mohammed Faizal told DC that the issue has not come to his attention so far. “I will certainly look into it and figure out what impedes in giving relief. I hope Mohammed can be rewarded the way we did in the case of another fisherman family from the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) fund of Lakshadweep Development Corporation recently,” he said.