CHENNAI: Development along the East Coast Road (ECR), at whose cost? With shores shrinking as a result of various developmental activities along this 40-km stretch, Chennai’s fishing community has been put in a dicey situation. There is hardly any space left for tying their boats or setting up cyclone shelters.
Every time a cyclone hits the coast, boats parked within the cramped space hit against each other or building walls, forcing the fisherfolks to spend lakhs from their pockets to fix them.
ECR, believed to be one of the most scenic coastal highways in the country today, was once a small winding road passing through hundreds of fishing hamlets in between Chennai and Puducherry. Once it became a two-lane road in 2002, there was no looking back as tourist traffic increased.
Though environment laws restrict developmental activities 500 metres from the shoreline, hotels, resorts and posh bungalows fill the coastal stretch now, jeopardising the lives of the native fishing community.
Dedicated buildings once constructed, particularly in between Kottivakkam and Kovalam, to park the boats and store fishing nets, were brought down by these commercial establishments, leaving 10-50 metre-wide space in the shore for the fishing-related activities. “We tie our boats to compound walls of shrimp farms, which came up here recently, and use thatched huts alongside to store nets,” said D Ramar, a fisherman from Reddykuppam.
“However, the sea gets rough during this part of the year (north-east monsoon) and wave after wave smash the boats hard at night,” he added.
Deva Velayutham from Neelangarai said that even a minor repair work in a fibre-made boat costs `4,000-`5,000 as it involves usage of expensive powdered glass. “To fix a hole approximately in the size of a one-rupee coin, we need `15,000,” he added.
The situation turns from bad to worse when cyclone warnings were out, like the one now. People were left at the mercy of local moneylenders who help them in renting out tractors to which boats are tied for safety.
However, the magnitude of damage caused during such catastrophes was so high that it would take years for them to get things back on track. “Compensation for hundreds of boats, which were severely damaged during the 2011 Thane cyclone was yet to reach the fishermen. Remains of these boats are even now seen in the fishing hamlets,” said K Bharathi from South Indian Fishermen Welfare Association.