Labour unrest at Harbour

KOCHI:  The labour unrest at the Thoppumpady Fisheries Harbour is threatening to snowball into a communal issue. Kerala State Boat Operators’ Association has expressed fears that there was every possibility of the issue taking a communal turn. “The present stand-off between the labourers is related to their work and the contract for the supply of water.  However,  what creates apprehension is that the labourers of both sections belong to particular communities. In the present condition, it is easy to provoke their communal feelings,” said Joseph Xavier Kalapprakkal, general secretary of Kerala State Boat Operators’ Association.The immediate cause of the unrest at the harbour began when the operators of the purse-seine net boats refused to give the share of their catch to the labourers who supply water to the boats. Water to boats is supplied by Cochin Port Trust through contractors and a share of the catch is the wage for them. This has been the practice at harbour for years. There are more than 50 purse-seine net boats at the Harbour. Meanwhile the port management said that they were ready to supply water to boats directly, which was acceptable for fishermen too.“We have learnt that the boat operators have agreed to give a two percent share to the union. If the CITU agrees to the proposal, then the strike will be called off,” said a leader of the Kerala Purse-seine Matsya Thozhilali Union.Constructed in 1978, the Thoppumpady Harbour, one of the major harbours in the state is the base for around 200 fishing boats. It is also one of the few all-weather harbours in the country.  If the activities at the harbour come to a standstill,  it will be an economic disaster too.  Around 6.5 lakh tonnes of catch land here in a year. Any disruption in the functioning of harbour will affect the seafood industry, apart  from the life of the local fishermen and the related sectors.