Fishermen across the State, under the banner of the Kerala Fisheries Coordination Committee, will strike work and observe a dawn-to-dusk hartal on April 8 in protest against alleged anti-fishing community policies of the Union government. All fish markets and processing units will also remain closed.
Committee convener T. Peter said here on Monday that fishermen would stage a dharna in front of the domestic airport terminal, Thiruvananthapuram. Dharnas will be staged in front of Union government establishments at other fishing villages in the State. Traffic on coastal roads would be blocked, he said.
The fishing community had been demanding the rejection of the B. Meenakumari Committee report, withdrawal of the Union government order permitting foreign trawlers in Indian waters, and other steps that harmed the traditional fishing sector, Mr. Peter said.
Traditional fishermen had the right to fish freely in Indian waters up to 200 nautical miles.
