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A peace committee meeting with fishermen leaders was organised at the Rameswaram Taluk Office on Monday. Officials from the Departments of Fisheries, Revenue and Police participated.
The meeting was primarily convened to explain to the fishermen about the steps being taken by the Tamil Nadu government to help bring back the 27 fishermen, along with five mechanised boats, jailed in Sri Lanka after they were charged with poaching while fishing in Palk Bay on October 14.
The fishermen had announced an indefinite strike from October 15 and road blockade on Pamban Road Bridge on October 18 to draw the attention of the Union and the State governments.
Under such circumstances, the Tamil Nadu government directed the district officials to meet with the fishermen leaders and explain the steps being taken by them.
After an hour-long meeting, a fishermen leader P. Jesu Raja told media persons that the government should not only help in getting the jailed fishermen released, but also in retrieving the mechanised boats. He pointed to the non-retrieval of nine mechanised boats from Sri Lanka, which were impounded from Ramanathapuram and Pudukottai fishermen in 2022.
Though a court in Sri Lanka had ordered the release of the nine boats, the Centre had to intervene in getting them retrieved safely as it involved administrative procedures between the two governments, Mr Jesu Raja said.
Strike to continue
Though they had to work daily for their livelihood, a feeling of insecurity had forced them to stay off the sea, the fishermen leaders said and added that their indefinite strike call be in force till there was an assurance from the Centre that there would not be any more arrests by the Sri Lankan Navy on false charges.
The fishermen associations had also announced that they would resort to a ‘rail roko’ agitation on November 1 in front of Mandapam railway station.
The meeting was held in the presence of Revenue Divisional Officer G. Gopu in which DSP S Umadevi, DD Fisheries L Pirabhavathi, Tahsildars B. Balakrishnan and M. Abdul Jabbar and AD Fisheries V. Abdul Kather Jalani participated.
The fishermen lwere represented by P. Jesu Raja, R. Sagayam, N.J . Bose, among others.
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