Following representations from the local fishermen, a mini fishing harbour at a cost of Rs. 133 crore has been proposed to be constructed at Juvvaladinne coastal village near Bogole here in Nellore district to enable local boat owners and fishermen families to improve their income sources and enhance standard of living.
The harbour is to come up at the point where the Chippaleru stream coming from upland areas in Jaladanki area joins the Bay of Bengal.
The State Fisheries Department had sent the proposal to the Central government for approval. The officials are now awaiting the technical permissions.
The department officials informed the fishermen’s associations that the approval was expected shortly with fund allocations too. After this, the harbour work would begin expeditiously.
Fishermen’s Cooperative Society president K. Pali Setti had sought immediate steps for hastening the process going by the need for creating standard infrastructure to boost the prospects for the fishermen.
A survey has already been done for the Juvvaladinne harbour even as the Centre had sought a feasibility report from the Central Institute of Coastal Engineering for Fisheries (CICEF) later. The location was finalised as such a harbour could not be located in the southern areas of the district because of the location of the Sriharikota space station there.
Originally, the harbour was proposed in Muthukur area near Krishnapatnam but was eventually given up following the coming up of a major port. The harbour has been a decades-long project as the fishermen along the long coastal belt in Nellore district are facing untold hardships due to lack of standard facilities. For fishing boats, the facilities at the harbour provide a safe place during cyclones and bad weather. Also, jetties, foot bridges, anchorage, fish landing and distribution points will make the task of fishermen easier.
