Muthalapozhi harbour — infamous as one of the deadliest in the state — has shut down following sand accumulation, owing to inadequate dredging activities at the harbour mouth.
Located at the meeting point of the Vamanapuram River and the Arabian Sea, Muthalapozhi is a hub for large-scale fishing activities. As many as 160 large fishing vessels and about 400 small ones operate out of here, offering livelihood to 20,000 people. Now, fishing activities have stalled indefinitely.
Local residents allege that unscientific breakwater construction has turned the harbour mouth into a death trap for fishermen. Over 70 lives have perished in the area in the past eight years.
The harbour has witnessed umpteen protests in the past decades over safety issues. Currently, another wave of protests is swelling as uncertainties and apprehensions loom large over the fisherfolk who depend on the harbour. They fear missing out on the upcoming fishing season.
As of Tuesday, the harbour mouth has a sand accumulation of around 1.5 lakh metric tonnes, and clearing this before the monsoon to make it navigable is going to be a herculean task for the state government.
“This is happening for the first time in a decade. The entire harbour mouth has been closed with sand,” says Biju Pathrose, a fisherman operating from the harbour for the past 25 years.
“We have been fighting for our livelihood for so many years. Now our worst fear has come true. We are out of work and now it’s almost certain that we will lose out on the fishing season. We have lost all our hopes.”
Following the shutdown of the harbour, widespread protest has erupted among the fishermen and the allied working community at Muthalapozhi. The protestors are understandably enraged and the authorities have been struggling to pacify them.
Fisherfolk to move High Court
Sajeev Salahudeen, vice-chairman of the Muthalapozhi Avakasa Samrakshana Samithi, says that the fisherfolk have decided to seek the High Court’s intervention in the matter. “Thousands of people have been struggling for their livelihood, and the government is yet to provide any kind of relief,” he fumes.
“Families are on the verge of starvation, yet even free rations have not been offered. We are planning a big protest on Wednesday.”
In the wake of the crisis at Muthalapozhi, the state government has earmarked spaces at the harbours in Kollam and Sakthikulangara for the displaced fishermen.
However, this hasn’t gone down well. “Moving to other harbours is not at all an option for the fishermen,” says Sajeev.
Joy C, a fisherman, echoes the same. “We have tried to go fishing in other places but the situation is hostile; they don’t want to welcome outsiders. We went to these places with all necessary documents but they treated us badly,” he says.
Frantic efforts
With the situation going out of hand, the harbour engineering department is scurrying to mobilise machinery for large-scale dredging at the harbour. This is crucial to avoid flooding and to ensure safe fishing activities during the monsoon.
An official of the department says work got stalled on Monday due to the protests.
“We cannot do anything without the local community’s support. Our aim is to remove the sand and make the harbour mouth navigable before the monsoon sets in. The local community has split into four groups and there are conflicts between them. This has added to the chaos,” the official says.
The department has sought the district collector’s intervention to sort out the issues. “Dredging activities need to be completed within the next three or four weeks. We have to break the sandbar, else the water levels in the river will rise and flood many panchayats in the region,” the official says.
“We are bringing a dredger from Azheekal and it has to be brought via sea. Some repair works and paperwork are remaining, and we will be able to bring them by next week.”
When asked about the delay in initiating work, the official says the harbour department could not undertake dredging activities as per the plan because Adani Port didn’t release the funds on time.
It is learnt that last July, Adani Port stalled the dredging activities and refused to continue with their responsibility. Following this, after negotiations, the harbour department decided to take over the dredging activities, on the condition that Adani Port pays for the work.
“They were supposed to hand over Rs2.05 crore. They deposited the money only in March. That is the cause for the delay,” says the official.
“We had planned to launch the dredging activities under the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana scheme. As per the original schedule, the work should have been completed by December-end.”