MAYILADUTHURAI: The Fisheries and Fishermen Welfare Department has proposed a Rs 120-crore project to combat coastal erosion and assist the fishers by providing a working environment in five villages of Mayiladuthurai district.
The project includes river training walls, short groynes, canal dredging and other infrastructure. “As many fishing villages in Mayiladuthurai district do not have any protected beach-landing facilities the fishers are struggling to land their vessels. Acknowledging the request from fisherfolk and their representatives, we are sending a proposal for various works such as river training walls, short groynes and canal dredging at a combined cost of Rs 120 crore,” said D Rajkumar, the Executive Engineer in the Fisheries Department.
Villages such as Melamovarkarai, Keezhamovarkarai, Savadikuppam, Nayakkarkuppam and Madathukuppam are facing severe coastal erosion over the past few years.
An official said, “We are planning to construct a series of 28 short groynes at a total cost of Rs 55 crore for five villages for a total stretch of five kilometres on the seashore to combat erosion.” Chellanaru River opens into the sea between Nayakkarkuppam and Madathukuppam. Earlier, the fishers used to navigate through the Chellanaru River mouth, and berth their boats at Buckingham Canal. However, the Chellanaru River mouth has been closing up often due to silt due to a lack of river training walls.
“We are planning to construct a couple of river training walls at a cost of around Rs 22 crore in the Chellanaru River. We will also strengthen and deepen the Buckingham Canal at a cost of Rs 8 crore,” the official added.
Around 600 motorised and non-motorised boats are affected in five villages due to coastal erosion and a lack of facilities. The fisherfolk demanded facilities such as net-mending sheds and fish-drying platforms. The department said the demands would be included in the project. Sources said the funds would be sought from the Union Government through schemes such as the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY) or the Fisheries and Aquaculture Infrastructure Development Fund (FIDF). The department would soon prepare a Detailed Project so that the funds could be allocated next year for the project.
Sources said the funds would be sought from the Union Government through schemes such as the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY) or the Fisheries and Aquaculture Infrastructure Development Fund (FIDF). The department would soon prepare a Detailed Project so that the funds could be allocated next year for the project.