Eight mechanised boat owners left for Sri Lanka to appear before a court in connection with the seizure of their boats by the Navy along the Palk Bay on the charge of poaching.
According to V.P. Sesu Raja, a fishermen leader from Thangachimadam, the boat owners had lost their livelihood as the boats were seized two years ago. While the arrested fishermen were let off after the government intervened, the boats remained anchored in Sri Lankan docks.
As a result, the boat owners incurred a huge loss, borrowing as theu did from private lenders to settle the loans due to the cooperative societies and other financial institutions. The governments, he said, should help the boat owners.
The fishermen leader said the livelihood of the fishermen was lost and the capital invested by the boat owners went waste with the boats having been impounded. Each mechanised boat, he said, cost around ₹50 lakh and might have gone waste as they were lying in the docks without any safety measures.
Each boat would require ₹10-₹20 lakh for repairs and the fishermen looked to the governments. The court hearing is scheduled for Friday (January 27), he said.
All the fishermen left for Chennai and flew to Jaffna by a scheduled flight.
