Rabindranath Biswas
Diglipur, Aug 28: The fishermen of Gandhinagar area under Diglipur Tehsil have raised the issue of non-existence of a floating jetty in their area. According to information, the fishing community in Gandhinagar area is experiencing severe inconveniences and hardships in berthing and sailing their fishing boats/dinghies owing to non-existence of a floating jetty in their area.
Talking to Andaman Sheekha Daily, the fishermen of this region said that they wrote a letter to the Director of Fisheries in the year 2022, but unfortunately no initiative was taken to redress their problem. The proposal to construct a floating jetty at a location in Ward No. 03 in Gandhinagar is in cold storage, they further alleged.
The fishermen added that they are facing severe difficulties in berthing and navigating their fishing dinghies owing to non-existence of a floating jetty in their area. “We have to walk and wade through marshy coastal bed and marky waters for about 400 mtrs from the shore point and swim into the deep water to the point where we anchor our dinghies, as in the time of low tide, we will not be able to sail/ply our dinghies as the water recedes and coast remains dry during low tide, lamented the fishermen.”
Sharing their plight they further said that the coastal area where we berth our dinghies is infested with crocodiles that can be sighted in shallow waters as well. “In fact, we risk our lives and operate our dinghies from this highly accident-prone area”.
Another eye opening fact is that there are women fishermen who, on a daily basis, also have to wade through the murky waters in the wee hours to venture into the creek waters/sea to catch fish in dinghies and face the same ordeal; a harrowing experience, they claimed.
They further said that the delay in construction of a floating jetty in the area is prolonging their agony, which has become unbearable. “There is a jetty in all the fishing communities in other areas. Our fishing location is worse than the other fishing community around the island,” a distraught fisherman decried.
“We are fed up. We are tired of hearing speeches, now is the time for action and to relieve us of our plight,” said another person. They finally urged the Administration to construct a floating jetty in the area and rescue this fishing community from the quagmire in which they have been risking their lives and catching fish for their livelihood.
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