VASCO: NFF has decided to launch a national level campaign in the eastern and western coasts if the Sagarmala programme is not rejected by the Central government.
NFF will go to all coastal States with the objective to protect coasts, common water bodies and fish workers from March 1, 2019 onwards. National Fish-workers Forum (NFF) held two-day office bearer meeting at ICSA, Chennai.
Vice Chairperson Olencio Simoes said that The Director General of Shipping in its press note has proposed the establishment of a shipping corridor [Traffic Separation Scheme] off the south-west coast of India to prevent collision incidents between merchant vessels and fishing vessels. The proposed lanes which are currently under consideration will be located at a distance of about 90 nautical miles west of Mangalore in Karnataka, with the lanes leading in a south easterly direction to the southernmost tip of India and ending about 40 nautical miles off south of Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu. The average distance from the coast is about 50 nautical miles. The office bearers meeting of the National Fishworkers Forum [NFF] held at Chennai on the 30th of November raises its concerns about this proposal scheme. No feasibility studies with respect to the livelihood and environmental impact of this project is yet done by the government. Neither have the government initiated discussions with fishing community.
NFF observes this unilateral move by the government with extreme caution as the main fishing grounds will be lost. Eighty six percent of the fish is available in this area where majority of the fishing activities initiated by the mechanised and non mechanised boats take place.
The National Fish-workers’ Forum (NFF) rejects the draft Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) notification, 2018, which was made public by the Union Environment Ministry in April, as it is against protecting biodiversity and ecology and stands in violations of the provisions of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986. The new notification has avoided the traditional and customary rights of the fishing community. NFF demands that there should be a comprehensive Coastal Regulation Zone Act which protects the livelihoods of fisher folk, coastal and marine ecology in consultation with the fishing communities.
The new Draft National Policy on maritime 2018 [NPM] initiated by the Union Government is of serious consequences to the fishing community and marine ecology. This has mooted marine-culture zones by demarcating special areas in the sea for activities such as cage farming, bivalve farming, pen culture, seaweed culture, hatcheries and nurseries. The draft marine-culture policy aims to lease out special zones in the sea to private entities to cultivate marine organism in an enclosure in the open sea. NFF strongly condemns this policy as it will lead to the entry of corporates into the sector leading to the loss of livelihood to the local fishermen. The policy has also suggested farming of genetically modified (GM) species in closed marine-culture systems which is dangerous to the fishing environment in the sea.
NFF demands that the Central Government declare the Cyclone Gaja 2018 as a ‘severe magnitude disaster’. Adequate compensation for the cyclone affected communities and restoring their livelihood options with utmost urgency should be the priority of the Central and State Government.
The General Body of the National Fishworkers Forum will be held in Gujarat on 28th, 29th and 30th of January 2019 in Porbandar, Gujarat. This conference will see the coming together of various fishing communities from across the coastal states to deliberate on the various issues affecting the fishing communities today.
