CANACONA: The defunct cold storage plant of the fisheries department at Palolem in Canacona serves no practical purpose and local fishermen have now demanded that it be repaired and restarted soon.
Fishermen here say that they are forced to travel long distances to source ice in the absence of a cold storage plant.
Dayanand Pagi, a former deputy chairperson and ward member from Palolem has voiced a strong demand for the repair of the plant here and also demanded for a mini market.
According to Pagi, a significant population of fishermen resides in the coastal regions of Canacona municipality area, including Palolem, Overe, Colamb, Patane, and Devavali. The then Chief Minister Bhausaheb Bandodkar had established a cold storage facility in Palolem through the Fisheries Department, for storage and sale of fish in the morning.
Now the cold storage stands in a state of disrepair, with trees and shrubs encroaching upon it. Palolem beach is known as a tourist destination, attracting domestic and foreign tourists alike. Unfortunately, the tourists are greeted with the sight of this dilapidated structure near the entrance to Palolem.
Meanwhile, there are over 50 mechanized boats around Palolem but due to the absence of adequate fish storage facilities, fishermen resort to loading their catches onto pickups and transporting them to Margao for sale. This practice has persisted for many years. With no mini fish market available in the Palolem area, local fisher women are forced to sell fish by the roadside. Pagi during his tenure had proposed the construction of a fish market, but the plan never came to fruition due to land acquisition issues, informed Nandu Pagi.
There is now a growing demand for the municipality to take over the dilapidated cold storage facility in the name of development and establish a mini fish market. Rajendra Desai, a former chairperson, has also echoed the sentiment and called for a similar approach to be adopted for the cold storage facility.
