A series of accidents in the sea off the coast of Kerala involving both traditionally modified canoes and fishing boats have given rise to a demand from fishers unions that the government take steps to ensure that fishing boats and traditional canoes came under insurance cover.
Jackson Pollayil of Swathanthra Matsya Thozhilali Federation, an independent union of fishers, said insuring fishing boats involved high premium, which dissuaded a vast majority of boat owners from going for it. He said fish catch was seasonal, and that there was no certainty on regular returns from fishing ventures. Such a situation warrants hard calculations on the part of fishing boat owners, who are not always interested in investing in insurance schemes, he added.
Fisheries Department sources said though boat owners had been advised to take insurance cover, they had not complied for various reasons.
The vast majority of around 300 traditionally modified canoes (fishing vessels with inboard engines) in the State do not have insurance cover, said Charles George of Matsya Thozhilali Aikya Vedhi, a federation of independent unions of fishers. He alleged that fishing gear like nets did not come under the purview of insurance cover.
Mr. George said the boat St. Antony , which sank off the coast of Vypeen on Wednesday morning had not been salvaged. The cost of the boat as well as the fishing gear is around ₹1.20 core. Salvaging the vessel is a Herculean task. Most traditionally modified canoes cost between ₹60 lakh and ₹1 crore, he added.
