The 15-member team led by Additional Director of Fisheries, Johny Tom Varghese, which had inspected 165 boats of Tamil Nadu fishermen, confiscated by the Lankan navy since 2015 on charges of trespassing into Lankan waters and which were ordered to be released by the island nation recently, has found that only 53 boats could be salvaged.
After deciding to implement its recently amended Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Act, 1996 and Marine Fisheries (foreign fishing vessels regulation) Act, 1979, the Lankan government had ordered the release 173 trawlers on September 7. The team during its visit from October 9 to 15 had inspected the 165 boats belonging to Tamil Nadu fishermen and found only 44 mechanised boats and 9 country boats salvageable.
The team, comprising five officials and 10 fishermen leaders and mechanics had inspected the boats berthed at Puthalam, Kalpitiya, Thalaimannar, Kiranchi, Karainagar, Kankesanthurai and Trincomalee naval bases and found most of the boats had suffered extensive damage due to ‘years of negligence’ and could not be salvaged.
Officials said while about 17 boats berthed in Trincomalee, Kankesanthurai and Kalpitiya were in good condition, majority of boats berthed in Kiranchi and Karainagar were in bad shape.
On Monday, the team sent its detailed report to the government on the pre-salvage inspection. The officials hoped that the salvage operation, after getting necessary clearances from the State government and Ministry of External Affairs would commence in the next 15 days.
P. Sesu Raja, the Rameswaram fishermen leader who was part of the team, said it was pathetic to see the boats, each valued at ₹10 lakh to ₹50 lakh become a heap of mangle. All these boats have to be condemned as scrap, he said and urged the government to compensate the owners of boats, which could not be salvaged.
