All Mechanised Boats Fishermen Association has called for a protest on Friday (October 25, 2024) against four mechanised boats that have installed high-power engines in their boats.
At an emergency meeting of the association, chaired by its president, V.P. Sesuraja, the association has resolved to stage a demonstration on Friday morning in front of the Rameswaram bus stand.
The resolution said that over 600 mechanised fishing boats were being operated from the Rameswaram harbour. Among them, 400 fishing boats had motors of 193 horsepower and some 200 boats had 120-horsepower motors. However, four mechanised boats that are operating from Rameswaram harbour had installed motors that had 280 horsepower. The engines were imported from China.
The installation of high-power engines in a few boats has created a confusion among the fishermen that might eventually snowball into a law and order problem.
The resolution said that fishing boats with such high-speed engines would further create issues between India and Sri Lanka with regard to fishing. The fishermen demanded that the State government, the district administration, and the Department of Fisheries remove the high-speed engines from the four fishing boats.