Fishermen at a public consultation meeting here on Saturday sought clarity on the number houses likely to be demolished for constructing a ₹65-crore coastal berth near Kasba Bengre under the jurisdiction of the old port.
They also asked the Ports Department to make use of a particular type of dredger in the ₹29-crore capital dredging work proposed from the north wharf of the port to the river mouth.
The government organised the public consultation at the Government Secondary School grounds in Kasba Bengre to discuss the environmental impact of the two proposed projects.
Deputy Commissioner Sindhu B. Rupesh and Karnataka State Pollution Control Board senior environment officer Vijaya Hegde chaired the meeting.
The coastal berth, of 3,691.8 sq.m, has been proposed to handle cargo related to Lakshadweep and Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The ports department said the new berth would have double the cargo-handling capacity of the old port.
The dredging work proposed involves the creation of a 80-m channel with 7-m draft.
Only a few locals and fishermen’s representatives turned up for the meeting. Criticising officials for not giving adequate publicity on the projects, Bilal Moiuddin, a resident and Congress worker, said people whose houses are likely to be demolished for the project have not been informed about it yet. The least officials could have done is to inform the local masjid head about the meeting, he said. He asked the officials to ensure the project does not affect locals.
D. Vedavyas Kamath, MLA for Mangaluru City South, asked port officials to identify the houses that need to be demolished by taking help from revenue officials. The families to be affected should be called for a separate meeting where the rehabilitation process can be explained, he said. Purse-seine Boat Fishermen’s Association member Mohan Bengre urged the port officials to make use of cutter dredger instead of grab dredger for dredging work. “We have faced enough problems with the haphazard dredging work done earlier. We will not allow it this time,” he said.
Director of ports department Captain Swamy said they cannot specify the type of dredger, as both types are likely to be used.
