Union Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting and Fisheries L. Murugan on Tuesday said the Centre was taking steps to bring back 23 Tamil Nadu fishermen arrested in Sri Lanka. “We are in touch with the Union External Affairs Minister and complete details of the arrested fishermen have been sought from the Tamil Nadu government,” Mr. Murugan told reporters during his visit to Thanjavur and Tiruchi. Replying to a query, Mr. Murugan said over 600 Tamil Nadu fishermen were killed by the Sri Lankan Navy prior to 2014. Not a single firing incident on fishermen had been reported after 2014 when Prime Minister Narendra Modi assumed charge, he claimed and added that the Centre was concerned about the welfare of the fishermen. The Centre had granted Rs.20,000 crore for the benefit of fishermen and there was no compromise on their welfare. The Centre had taken up modernisation of fishing harbours, including the facility at Kasimedu in Chennai, and fish landing centres with a view to improving their economic lot. The Centre’s policy was to provide Kisan Credit Card to every poor fisherman and the standard operating protocols were being readied.
The Union Minister said there was no opposition to the three new farm laws except in a couple of States. The laws allowed the farmers to fix the prices of their agricultural produce and the laws were enacted heeding the long-pending demand of the farming community. The farm laws were being opposed for “political reasons”. The resolution passed against the farm laws by the DMK government was unnecessary and a waste of time of the Legislative Assembly. “We only see the resolution as anti-farmer,” he said and claimed that no farmer in Tamil Nadu said they did not want the farm laws. The suicide of farmers after 2014 had been completely stopped and aRs.6,000 per year was being directly deposited in the bank account of every farmer. To a query, Mr. Murugan said the DMK government had come out with many “unwanted” announcements. It was silent till now on providing Rs.1,000 to housewives as promised in the run up to the Assembly election. Replying to another query, he said the interests of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu would be looked into and steps taken accordingly to share Cauvery water without affecting both States.
2021, THG PUBLISHING PVT LTD.