Puducherry: Fishermen to steer clear of Lok Sabha elections

Say none of the announced welfare measure delivered so far

January 27, 2014 11:18 pm | Updated May 18, 2016 06:56 am IST - PUDUCHERRY:

Veerampattinam fishermen staging a black flag protest in the  sea demanding tsunami houses on Republic Day in Puducherry on Sunday. Photo: S.S. Kumar

Veerampattinam fishermen staging a black flag protest in the sea demanding tsunami houses on Republic Day in Puducherry on Sunday. Photo: S.S. Kumar

The fishermen communities across the Union Territory have made a decision to boycott the Lok Sabha elections unless the welfare schemes announced to them are implemented.

So far, the Puducherry government has promised tsunami houses, relief measures for the cyclone Thane and other welfare schemes for the fishermen that have not been delivered so far.

All of the leading fishing village panchayats including Narambai, Veerampattinam, Panithittu, Nalavadu and Moorthykuppam have therefore decided not to vote for any party during the Lok Sabha elections, a fishermen leader said.

In 2009, fishermen in the various fishing communities received pattas for land. Unfortunately till date, apart from in Kalapet, there have been no moves to establish the Tsunami housing, he said.

After the tsunami, 150 fishermen families in Narambai, 100 in Panithittu, 250 in Nalavadu and 300 in Veerampattinam have received homes, but none of them from the Puducherry government. The government has constructed 256 homes in Kalapet for the affected fishermen, but in Narambai 186 people have received pattas for their tsunami houses but so far there has been no progress since then, Kanagasabai, a fisherman from Narambai said.

The Maharashtra Government donated the tsunami homes in Narambai, Veerampattinam and Nalavadu, while the UK Government donated the houses in Moorthykuppam. In Panithittu the Tsunami homes were donated by a trust. None of these houses were given by the Puducherry government.

Apart from this, in many of the villages Thane relief money has also not been given.

Earlier, the Veerampattinam fishermen staged a protest and only they received the Thane relief measures, he said.

On Republic Day, the fishermen of Veerampattinam again staged a protest. Throughout the village, black flags were tied and a group of fishermen went out to sea and staged a black flag protest behind Gandhi Statue. These fishermen were demanding that the Tsunami houses be given as soon as possible.

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