More than 4,000 fishermen struck work on Saturday in protest against export companies forming a ‘syndicate’ and offering low prices for the catch meant for export such as of prawn, crab and squid (‘kanavai’).
A week after resuming their vocation in the new fishing season on May 30, the fishermen struck work after the boat owners said that they incurred huge losses as four export companies formed a syndicate and forced them to sell the catch at rates fixed by them.
On the first fishing day, the companies procured prawn at the rate of Rs. 700 to Rs. 750 per kg, crab at Rs. 280 and ‘kanavai’ at Rs. 150; but on the second and third day, they reduced the rates by 30 to 40 per cent after forming a syndicate, fishermen leader P. Sesu Raja said.
Since the boat owners did not have cold storage facilities, they were forced to sell the catch at rates fixed by them, he said. On the other hand, the export companies, stored the fish in their modern cold storage facilities and sold them when they fetched good price in the export market, he said.
He said a vessel owner who spent about Rs. 60,000 for a day’s fishing — diesel (Rs. 35,000), wages to crew and driver (Rs. 15,000) and ice, ration and oil (Rs. 10,000) — struggled even to break even.
“While the boat owners incurred losses, the export companies, and subsidiary units such as oil and ice factories and workers made their money at the cost of the boat owners, Mr. Sesu Raja said.
He said that the fishermen leaders proposed to hold talks with the owners of export companies in Tuticorin on Monday, after which they would take a decision on resuming fishing.
