RAMESWARAM
Reiterating their charter of demands, the mechanised boat fishermen from Rameswaram staged a demonstration on Tuesday.
Led by fishermen leader Sesu Raja, they demanded the Union government to resume talks with the Sri Lankan government immediately and ensure safety for the fishermen while fishing in the Palk Bay.
The Sri Lankan Navy personnel, under the guise of crossing the territorial waters, harassed the fishermen from Tamil Nadu, he charged.
Only when the Sri Lankan Navy adopted a friendly approach, the livelihood of the fishermen from Tamil Nadu would be safe and secure, he said and added that the Union and State governments should provide subsidy on diesel which would help them overcome financial strains.
Similarly, about 150 fishing boats, which were seized by the Sri Lankan Navy in the past, remained in the island nation. The governments, through dialogue, should help retrieve the boats and also give financial assistance to repair them, Mr Sesu Raja said.
“We are worried about our survival and there was no place for politics...The governments are aware of our problems,” he responded when asked to comment on the relationship between Union government and the Tamil Nadu government.
The Rameswaram fishermen have been staying off the sea since October 9 as a mark of a week-long protest.
