The Hindu Business Line : Fishworkers' forum opposes letting foreign vessels operate in EEZ

THE National Fishworkers Forum (NFF) has protested the moves of the Union Government to allow around 1,170 deep-sea foreign fishing vessels to operate in the Indian exclusive economic zone (EEZ).

Addressing presspersons after the conclusion of the three-day general body meeting of the NFF here on Thursday, Mr Harekrishna Debnath, NFF President, said this move would jeopardise the livelihood of Indian fishermen. It would allow the idle vessels of developed countries to be deployed in Indian waters.

The Murari Committee report of 1997 had said that there was no need for foreign shipping vessels to operate in Indian waters. Instead, the report had recommended that the Government provide adequate fuel and financial assistance to the fishermen.

"However, the Government has placed the recommendations of the report in cold storage. Instead of helping the fishermen here with a proper deep-sea fishing policy, foreign shipping vessels are encouraged to operate in Indian waters," he said.

During the early nineties, the then Congress Government, led by P.V. Narasimha Rao, had tried to allow around 2,600 deep-sea foreign fishing vessels to operate in the Indian EEZ. The NFF's struggle then helped in scuttling such a move, he said.

Sethusamudram project

Mr Debnath said the NFF was against the Sethusamudram canal project. "The Government has initiated steps on Sethusamudram project without proper environment assessment. The project area is rich in bio-diversity and provides livelihood to around 10,000 fishermen. The NFF will oppose this project," he said.

To oppose WTO meet

Mr Debnath said the forum had also decided to oppose the WTO meeting on Non-Agricultural Marketing Access (NAMA), scheduled to be held in Hong Kong during December 13-18. This meeting wanted to open up the markets of the developing countries to the developed countries for non-agricultural produce. "This move will serve a big blow to the fisheries sector, as the domestic market will be flooded with the discards of big countries. Considering this, it is essential to exclude the fisheries sector from the NAMA meeting," he said.

The forum would take a delegation to Hong Kong to voice its protest before the WTO. Apart from this, there would be protests in all the coastal States in the country from December 13 to 18, he said.

Industrial aquaculture

The Supreme Court, in a ruling, had banned industrial aquaculture practices in the coastal regulatory zone. "But the Union Government is planning to enact a Coastal Aquaculture Authority Act, under which industrial aquaculture will be allowed in the zone. Industrial aquaculture should not be permitted in the coastal regulatory zone, as it will affect the fisheries sector," he said.

Fish catch depleting

Referring to the depletion in fish catch in all the major centres in the country, he said States along the east coast such as West Bengal, Orissa and Andhra Pradesh were facing a fish famine this year. Mr Debnath said the NFF was opposed to the European Union's non-tariff barriers on the fisheries sector. The sector lost foreign exchange to the tune of Rs 2,000 crore due to the environmental and health barriers imposed by the European Union.

The fisheries sector had earned foreign exchange to the tune of Rs 6,000 crore till now in the current year. This was the third largest foreign exchange earner in the agriculture sector in the country, he added.

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