KOCHI: With a two-month-long trawling ban in the wake of the monsoon, one would expect traditional boatyards along the coastline to be busy tending to repair works on fishing vessels.
Sadly, these have cast a desolate scene this year, especially in Ernakulam. Not many fishing boats have docked at the yards. And this has left many labourers, who were dependent on work during this crucial period, hapless.
“Earlier, every boat yard would have at least 12 labourers exclusively for repair works. Now this number has reduced to just three,” says K J Jerry, owner of Carmel Marine Engineering boat yard in Vypeen.
He adds the number of labourers reduced drastically as iron and fibre boats took over the fishing scene, which was once abundant in wooden boats.
“Not much manpower is required to mend iron boats. For wooden boats, which are quite hefty, people are employed to change the wooden slabs, place layers of aluminium sheets on top of them, etc.
With these boats, the workers just have to focus on painting, welding, changing the rusted sheets of the boat, trawling winch, nets, and so on. All of these combined do not require much handwork,” says Jerry.
Workers like George and Salim, who have been associated with boatyards for five decades, are still holding on in the field. Many others have switched to other work, including carpentry and painting.
“It’s not just the yards, the fishing sector is dwindling,” adds M K Mohan, owner of Anjali Boat Yard in Ochanthuruth. “Many don’t have enough money to bear the cost of repairs. They go for quick-fix jobs, and use second-hand or low-quality parts. Some just pay the initial payment and make us wait for months to pay the full cost. They, too, are facing a crisis.”