Karnataka Fishermen Knock PM Modi’s Door for Help to Save their Lives and Livelihood
Udupi: Leading fishermen associations in Karnataka have highlighted the urgent need for the adoption of new technology in the state’s fishing sector. They have also written to the Honorable Prime Minister of India under the aegis of Indian Fishermen for Technology Adoption (IFTA), seeking his direct intervention to spur the adoption of new technologies in the sector. Prominent boat owners and fishing community leaders in Gujarat had also written to the PM recently and highlighted similar issues.
Nithin Ramakanth member of the Federation said, “The incident involving four fishermen who went missing at Malpe recently and the loss of lives from the Suvarna Tribhuja incident last year has remained painfully etched in our collective memory and made us realize that our usual methods of communication and warnings were not adequate to respond to tragedies like these. It is high time that India adopts the highly-advanced communications and connectivity technology that is already available to ensure the fishing sector benefits from them in the longer term.”
“The Center must implement its adoption via standardizing the quality of technology available across the states. We have tested BSNL’s transponder, which has two-way data communication directly over satellite and works in the deep sea. We urge the Hon’ble Prime Minister’s direct intervention and request his government to deploy the latest technology immediately. We need a solution today as any delay will continue to endanger the safety and security of the fishermen at sea,” they added.
The adoption of next-generation digital and satellite communications technologies would raise the productivity of fishing harvest, create world-class competitiveness, apart from addressing the immediate and urgent challenge to ensure the safety of the state’s fishermen in the high seas. With the availability of new satellite technology, India today has access to services that can ensure the safety of fishermen through ubiquitous coverage that allows fishermen to communicate anywhere and even during the worst of storms, cyclones or other natural calamities.
Along with enhancing safety, technology can also help the fishermen raise their productivity and enable e-commerce transactions at sea. Through 2–way data systems, it is now becoming easier to send fish location data to fishermen at sea to ensure better supply and demand matching, while allowing fishermen to access markets and transact at sea to maximize the value of their catch.
In what is steadily becoming a nationwide call, more fisheries, fish cooperatives and boat owner associations are supporting the IFTA. Indian Fishermen for Technology Adoption will continue to bring the numerous issues being faced by fishermen to the forefront. The focus will remain on the digital transformation of this important sector that can benefit fishermen directly and the country more broadly, especially emphasizing the need for prompt action to prevent further tragedies.
Today, the nation’s fishermen eagerly await decisive action on behalf of the government to reap the benefits of the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY).
The North Kanara District Co-Operative Fish Marketing Federation Limited and South Kanara and Udupi district cooperative fish marketing federation Limited, Mangalore also highlighted the ongoing challenges for the sector and the impact of COVID-19 pandemic that has further exacerbated the flagging fortunes of the state’s fishermen and their communities.
The community continues to reel under the many challenges wrought by the loss of fishermen’s lives at sea as a result of bad weather and hostile situations emanating from captivity at the hands of neighbouring countries. A key reason for this has been the lack of good communications and connectivity technology that is otherwise already available in the market.
Despite being a sunrise sector, which engages over 2.8 crore fisherfolk with many more along the value chain, the fisheries sector continues to grapple with issues related to the growing loss of lives.
Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, it has become imperative that fishermen feel safe to go out into the open waters to help feed the country and bring their hard-earned wages to their families.
The COVID-19 lockdown had put the country’s marine fishery sector in the deep sea, inflicting a daily loss of ₹224 crores as per a Central Institute of Fisheries Technology (CIFT) report.
Malpe Fishermen association leader Raviraj Suvarna was also present during the press meet.