PANJIM: Pitching for a separate Union Ministry for Fishing, the group of traditional fishermen under banner Goenchea Ramponnkarancho Ekvott (GRE) has demanded to extend the fishing ban period from 61 days to 90 days along with implementing the ban on 5 kms mechanized fishing.
The forum has also demanded adequate reservation for fishing community in Maritime colleges and other universities. It has also asked for ban on all kind of destructive fishing methods and fishing gears like LED lights, purse seine, twin trawling, pair trawling, bull trawling, etc.
Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Saturday assured to have separate Union ministry for fishing, once Congress is voted to power at the Centre in 2019 elections.
“Gandhi has assured us to have a separate ministry for fisheries and fishermen welfare to do justice to the sector once voted to power,” said Olencio Simoes, general secretary of GRE and Vice Chairperson of National Fisherworkers’ Forum.
He said that Gandhi has agreed to include demand of separate ministry for Fisheries and Fisher Welfare in party’s manifesto for upcoming Lok Sabha election.
“Fisheries at present constitute only one division amongst three divisions belonging to the department of Animal Husbandry, Dairy and Fisheries which is functioning under the ministry of Agriculture,” Simoes said.
The forum has demanded that it should be multidisciplinary department that balances between the need of fish production, conservation of fish resources, equitable development of fishing communities and domestic consumption.
The fishing community also demanded scrapping of Coastal Regulation Zone notification 2019 claiming it to be detrimental for the community.
They have also asked to de-notify Mormugao Port Trust (MPT) jurisdiction over inland and coastal waters and land. They also asked for zero coal at MPT and no to Sagarmala Programme in Goa.
“We have given total 24 demands and Rahulji has assured that he will look into our demands. We are giving our demands to all political parties and whoever lays focus on our demand in their manifesto we will support them,” he said.
