Thiruvananthapuram: On Monday last, three fishing boats ran out of control and collided into the boulders of the breakwaters at Muthalapozhi harbour, near Perumathura. Fortunately none of the accidents were fatal as the fishermen in the boats managed to swim to safety. "Even the other day (Wednesday) a boat carrying four collided into the rocks. No one died, but they lost their boat," says a vendor here. Fishing mishaps have been a common occurrence at this harbour ever since the breakwaters were constructed, allegedly in an unscientific manner.
Fishermen here have been long complaining that the tidal inlet is too shallow, letting waves bounce off the bottom, driving the smaller boats out of control. V. Sasi, MLA, Chirayin-keezhu concurs. "Fishing mishaps have been a repetitive phenomenon at the harbour," he said. "When enquired I came to know that the harbour department is planning to bring their dredger from Kannur to increase the depth of the inlet." While the fishermen allege a technical mistake on part of the harbour department engineer for their misfortune, the harbour engineering department has something else to say.
"The three months of June, July and August are most accident prone months as the sea is particularly violent at this time of the year," said an official with the department. "The inlet is having a depth of 6 metres which is more than enough for the boats to safely pass through. But the sea being rough we had warned them against venturing out as it is too dangerous out there." The fishermen on the other hand point out that their livelihood is at stake and that it is the duty of the harbour department to ensure their safety. Justifying the harbour engineering department's claims one can find warning boards put up along the coast. Yet, contradicting themselves, they are preparing to dredge nevertheless.
"Certain parts within the inlet have a depth of only 4 meters, which we plan to dredge on. However the sea is too rough at the moment. We can't put up the dredger in this condition. Maybe by September," the official said. "Still, it is not right to blame us for the recurring accidents at the harbour," he added, "the primary necessity is to make the fisherfolks aware. Until then these kinds of mishaps are bound to occur." Whether the fault is theirs or not, the fact is that the fishermen at Muthalapozhi harbour, Perumathura, are facing an uphill battle to earn their bread. Like they grudgingly state, things are unlikely to change till few of them start dying in these mishaps. Until then fishing mishaps will most probably continue unabated.
