Disused vessels rusting along coastline in State

No ship-breaking facility after the one at Valinokkam port was shut down

Along the State’s coastline near busy ports and fishing harbours, you can find several rusted tugs, pilot vessels, passenger vessels and fishing trawlers waiting to be disposed of as scrap. However, in many cases, the vessels only degenerate and sink into the sea. This is because Tamil Nadu does not have a ship-breaking facility.

A lone facility used to be operational at the Valinokkam port in Ramanathapuram district.

Ship-breaking activities used to be carried out in the 1990s at the port. Plots of land were leased out by the Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation. However, it was shut down a few years ago after environmental concerns were raised, recall old-timers.

“Floating craft cannot be broken anywhere; we need a ship-breaking yard for that. At present, if vessels have to be broken, we have to tug them to either Kakinada or Kannur in Kerala and that too all the way around Sri Lanka, which is way too expensive. In most cases, the vessels are left to rust and sink into the water, causing pollution,” said C. Vijayakumar of Annam Steels.

Last month, an attempt was made to break a couple of vessels at the Kasimedu fishing harbour. However, the South Indian Fishermen Welfare Association objected, raising environmental concerns. “There is no facility or space inside the fishing harbour for breaking tugs or pilots. Vessels cannot just be broken at any place. Proper permission has to be taken and steps need to be taken to ensure no pollution is caused,” said K. Bharathi of the association.

A few years ago, a scrap merchant who had bought a small Coast Guard vessel at an auction struggled to break it down, owing to lack of permission and objections from various quarters. Finally, he shut shop, incurring huge losses. “I had no idea I had to obtain permission from the pollution control board. I also had to pay Customs duty,” he recalled.

Rules sought

Mr. Vijayakumar said that the State must draw up a set of rules on the lines of the ones in Gujarat so that ship breaking can be done in a pollution-free manner.

Sources in the Fisheries Department said that efforts were on to take control of the Chennai and Thoothukudi fishing harbours, where slipways are available for maintenance, repair and breaking of vessels. “The harbours are presently under the control of respective port trusts. We have plans to repair the facilities that are in disuse. Similarly, disposal of boats and discarded fishing nets is also a concern,” explained an official.