Kerala - Kollam   

Meet to discuss use of in-board engines in fishing

Ignatius Pereira

Fisheries Minister to attend the meet on August 9

KOLLAM: Fisheries Minister S. Sarma has convened a meeting of officials of the Fisheries Department and the Marine Enforcement Wing on August 9 to discuss the issue of operating fishing boats fitted with in-board engines of 99 HP to 112 HP.

The Kerala High Court had in 2004 banned the operation of such fishing boats.

As a prelude to the meeting, the Government had directed the Fisheries Department to engage in a State-wide formal survey and collect data on the number of such boats in operation in spite of the High Court ban.

The survey will be completed by August 8 and the data will be presented at the meeting.

The in-board engine boats are traditional fishing vessels with length ranging from 60 feet to 100 feet.

These boats have been declared ``not sea worthy'' as a result of which none of them could be registered. Yet they are operating as a major medium for traditional fishing, employing more than 28,000 fishermen all over the State. Fuel efficiency of these boats is one of the reasons why fishermen prefer them.

Sources said the August 9 meeting would try to find out an answer to whether it is possible to get the operation of such boats legalised. But at present that is beyond the powers of the State Government.

The first step in this regard would be to declare these boats sea worthy. That declaration should come from the Mercantile Marine Department as per the Merchant Shipping Act 1959. The Government will then have to move the court to get the ban lifted.

The Government's interest in this connection is consequent upon the in-board engines becoming a major livelihood provider in the traditional fishing sector within the past three to four years. But more than the livelihood issue, the Government has to analyse the life and death issues pertaining to these boats.

The in-board engine fishing boats have been declared not sea worthy on the basis of expert opinion that they are accident-prone. During this year's monsoon season alone, around 21 such boats had capsized in the State.

Though no deaths were reported, there were serious casualties. The contention is who will be held responsible for any deaths caused by a capsized boat, which is declared not sea worthy and banned by the court. Each of these boats carry 35 to 36 fishermen on board.

The sources said that since these boats are not registered, there are legally no owners for them.

Unregistered boats cannot be insured. And in a situation where there is a High Court ban on the operation of such boats, the Government is duty bound to ensure that none of these boats operate.

But not only are these boats operating, but also their numbers have considerably increased since the ban. Conniving at the operation of these accident-prone boats can even be tantamount to culpable homicide, the sources said.

In Kollam district, the Fisheries Department had already issued notices to those found operating these boats that they should not take such boats into the sea after the conclusion of the Supreme Court directed ban on fishing by vessels with engines of more than 10 HP. The ban comes to an end on August 15. But using force to block the sailing of these boats into the sea can result in serious law and order problems for the Government.

This is the issue that is worrying the Government, and hence the August 9 meeting, the sources said.

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