CHENNAI: The usual hustle and bustle at the Kasimedu fishing harbour were absent and vessels were lying idle ashore after the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) has alerted fishermen not to venture out in the sea due to low-pressure area forming over the southeast Arabian Sea.
The ICG is coordinating with the Fisheries department and State government in alerting fishermen not to venture into the sea, said Y K Singh, DIG and CG Public Relations Officer. “We have also informed the fishermen through VHF sets to return to the coast,” said Singh. The focus is currently more on the southern coast of Kanniyakumari, he said.
Meanwhile, more than 2,500 fishing boats from Kasimedu, which would venture out deep in the sea, could not sail out as the state government has put a clamp on giving subsidised diesel to fishermen for four days. A fisherman at the Kasimedu harbour said that only 10 boats sailed out from Kasimedu. “They took diesel from private bunks,” he said.
Another fisherman alleged that ICG had warned that they would detain fishermen found violating the alerts and venturing out in the sea, but ICG officials denied this.
Airport too prepared
Meanwhile, the Chennai airport director G Chandramouli told Express that they had kept de-watering pumps positioned in select areas and drainage was being cleared.He said if the weather deteriorated, the airport would be suspending the NOTAM (Notice to Airmen) on main runway. The main runway is now closed for six hours daily due to infrastructure works being carried out in the airport.