JNPT-affected fishermen put off channel bandh plan till December 21

Hanuman Koliwada transit camp fisherfolk gather for a meeting after their channel bandh protest was called off

A high-level meeting involving the district administration, senior police officials, and a letter of assurance from the Union Shipping Ministry's office has led Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) project-affected fishermen from Hanuman Koliwada to postpone the channel bandh agitation yesterday to December 21. This decision followed discussions held on Monday. The preparation for the channel bandh was already executed by placing fishing boats and a large number of fisherwomen, already stationed at strategic points inside the creek, to prevent any restriction from police. However, they all were called back, post the discussion.

High-level meeting

Parmanand Koli, secretary of the Maharashtra Small Scale Traditional Fish Workers Union said, "Some of our representatives were called for a high-level meeting on Monday afternoon, which was attended by Bharat Waghmare, deputy collector (rehabilitation) and senior police officials. The agenda for the meeting was to appraise the project-affected fishermen about the latest development in our demands and they requested us to call back the channel bandh protest, to which we agreed as per their assurances."

Chalo Delhi...

"The deputy collector informed us that he would take two of our representatives to Delhi on December 9, and would appraise the situation personally to high-ranking officials from the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, so that the issue could be resolved at the earliest. He also assured us that a tender for the construction of internal roads at the proposed plots for rehabilitation near JNPT township (villages Jaskhar and Funde), will be floated soon. And that the work on the same would be commenced once the tender was awarded to the contractor," said Koli.

Hanuman Koliwada fishermen during a high-level meeting with the deputy collector (rehabilitation) and senior police officials

"We have unanimously agreed on the name of Ramesh Koli, general secretary, Maharashtra Small Scale Traditional Fish Workers Union, and will soon finalise the second name to visit Delhi, to persuade our plea and condition," said Koli.

Property card demand

"Furthermore, our demand for handing over the 7/12 property cards as owners of the plot has been kept pending for approval from the central government. Only after this approval can JNPA transfer the proposed rehabilitation land to the collector of Raigad, and only then can the revenue department prepare the 7/12 property cards in the names of each of the 256 families who need to be rehabilitated," said Koli.

"During the meeting, the issue of overflowing gutters and accumulated garbage, which have become breeding grounds for mosquitoes and crawling creatures, was also discussed. The fishermen were assured that the gutters would be cleaned, and the garbage would be cleared immediately. However, even after nearly 24 hours since the meeting, we are still waiting for these assurances to be fulfilled," said Koli

Other side

When contacted, Bharat Waghmare, deputy collector (rehabilitation) for Raigad district, confirmed that he would accompany two fishermen to Delhi to meet senior officials at the ministry.

"The officials will receive first-hand accounts from the affected fishermen and understand the seriousness of the issue, which should help in making a timely decision," Waghmare said. When asked about the expenses for air tickets and accommodation, the deputy collector stated, "We will request JNPA to handle the costs."

Regarding the tender, he mentioned, "The tender for road construction at the proposed site is ready for approval. We estimate the cost to be over '3 crore, and once approved, it will be floated, and the work will be assigned. The entire rehabilitation process is awaiting consent from the central government."