The Hindu : Tamil Nadu News : Fish production will record steep fall

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Dec 30, 2004

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu

Fish production will record steep fall

By S. Vydhianathan

CHENNAI, DEC. 29. A major fallout of Sunday's tsunami will be a steep fall in fish haul in the State in the next three or four months.

The annual production, now of the order of four lakh tonnes, will plummet by at least 30 per cent as fishermen in 591 coastal villages may not venture into sea for three months. This, in turn, will hit the export of marine products, especially shrimps, which now account for Rs. 2,300 crores a year, industry sources say. Shrimp export processing units may not have work for the next three months; consequently, employment of thousands of workers will be affected.

According to official sources, out of four lakh tonnes, nearly 3.75 lakh tonnes of marine products are being exported, and 25,000 tonnes consumed within the State.

Fishermen yet to recover

Nearly 7,000 mechanised boats, including out-board and in-board motorboats, 30,000 country craft either fully or partially damaged and 32,000 nets were destroyed. Even if the boats were repaired it would take at least three months for the fishermen to take to the sea. They were yet to recover from Sunday's shock. Calamity struck every fisherman's family one way or the other. Either the head of the family or his children were washed away by the killer wave or their property was damaged.

The sources said about 6.82 lakh people were affected by the sea's fury; out of them 85 per cent were fishermen. According to Tuesday's figures, on Tuesday, about 4,000 fishermen were washed away, with Nagapattinam district alone recording 2,200 deaths. Bodies were being retrieved from the damaged huts in fishermen's colonies. About one lakh fishermen lost their houses. This apart, 3,000 poultry birds, 900 cows and 1,000 sheep and goats perished.

The signs of carnage could be seen on the 1076-km long coastline, right from Muttukadu in Tiruvallur district to Neerodi in Kanyakumari district. Sathankudi, a hamlet near Porayar in Nagapattinam district, was completely washed away, claiming 150 lives. A majority of the fishing villages were deserted and the lucky survivors moved to safety.

To provide immediate relief to the fishermen, the Government set up relief camps, where they were accommodated and provided food and other materials. Temporary shelters would be provided throughout the coastline.

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