HYDERABAD: Though tribals have always been associated with fishing, no measures have been taken to ensure fishing rights that are guaranteed under the community rights as per the Panchayat Extension to Scheduled Areas (PESA) Act, 1996, for the community. However, a change has begun as officials of the Tribal Welfare and Fisheries departments are helping the indigenous communities earn a living with the help of fishing.
Speaking to TNIE, Komaram Prabhakar, Coordinator of PESA Act, erstwhile Warangal district, says 61 tribal fisheries cooperative societies have been formed within the last year, registering around 1,300 tribals as fishermen with fishing licences under the ITDA Eturunagaram Agency area.
A total of 1,05,17,554 finger-size fish seed has been stocked in 334 tanks in Mulugu district alone, which will benefit the members of 14 tribal fishermen cooperative societies in five mandals. A total of 3,17,250 prawn fingerlings have also been stocked in the Narsimhasagar project in Mangapet mandal and the Palemvagu project in Venkatapuram mandal. In the Mahabubabad district, 57.25 lakh fish seed was released in 480 irrigation tanks and 82,976 fish seed has been stocked in 12 tanks in the Warangal district.
The tribal fishermen are also being provided fishing nets, mopeds, thippas (small boats) and other equipment. The fishermen can also avail group accidental insurance extended to them under the societies.
While this is the situation in northern Telangana, the Chenchu tribes have been facing difficulty in asserting their fishing rights.
Recently, around 27 Chenchus have received their fishing licence but have been facing opposition from within their community when it came to claiming the water spread area in the Krishna river under the Amrabad Tiger Reserve.
The issue is that the fishermen from Andhra Pradesh have been entering the Telangana waters for fishing, which is reportedly controlled by big illegal contractors. The contractors pay the Chenchus a certain sum to refrain from fishing in the river. It is those Chenchus who are now preventing their own people who have received fishing licences, from fishing in the water spread area which comes under their habitation.
The contractors enjoy sufficient political clout, thanks to the local political leadership which has been facilitating this illegal fishing.