Bogged down by loans, boat owners of Kasimedu have appealed to the State government to provide them financial support. With banks not coming to their rescue, many boat owners say they have been forced to borrow up to Rs. 10 lakh to go on fishing. “Last year, the State government attempted to get us loans through Kissan credit cards. However, the banks refused and the scheme did not take off in the fisheries sector. Exporters, who buy fish from Kasimedu, pay much less than what is due to the boat owners citing various reasons, including their own loans,” said community leader M.E. Raghupathi. As a result of the combination of low fish prices and high cost of diesel, only 40% of the boats go on voyages. “Since the voyages have become longer, we need to spend more on diesel, ice, provisions for men and payments. Earlier, we used to have week-long voyages, but now they are for 20-25 days. The boats venture into deeper sea meaning they have to be bigger to withstand the voyages. They cost around Rs. 1 crore, which is no small amount and there is no financial assistance from the formal sector,” said Varadhan, another community leader. K. Bharathi of the South Indian Fishermen Association said the need of the hour was setting up a bank exclusively for fishermen. Sources in the department said a meeting of boat owners and exporters would be convened shortly.
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