Fishermen yet to be paid for their services during last year’s monsoon

Fishermen who helped residents during last year’s Northeast Monsoon, are still waiting for the payment for the services rendered. Community leaders say that the men, who have put in physical labour to get stranded people out are being made wait for such small amounts unnecessarily.

Fishing boats are requisitioned by the authorities before rains and are kept ready for use to rescue stranded persons in flooded areas in and around the city.

Kosu Mani, a community leader, said that the fishermen were always ready to lend a helping hand when it comes to natural calamities and drownings in the sea. “I have been asking the AD fisheries to take steps to ensure that the amount reaches our men. We don’t know why the amount has not been disbursed. It’s been over six months now since they took part in the rescue,” he said.

K. Bharathi of the South Indian Fishermen Welfare. Association said that the fishermen have been assisting residents since 2015 but till now there is no proper system for disbursal of the promised amount. “For some years it was the Chennai Corporation. This year, they say the Revenue and Disaster Management department will make the payment. A few months ago, the fishermen who were involved in the rescue operations were facilitated. At that time only the boat owners were given a small amount, the others were not,” he added.