Katchatheevu Island, India – Sri Lanka Fishermen Issue, and Impact on Bilateral Ties – Pointwise

One of the main bones of contention in the diplomatic domain remains the issue of fishermen in the region, with both the governments not being able to reach any concrete and once-and-for-all resolution as yet.

Why in news recently?

• protest against EU ban on seafood exports from Sri Lanka.
• persistent protest from northern fishers against Indian trawlers.

What troubles the fisherman community ?

1. Fishermen prefer to go towards the Katchatheevu Island area in the strait, where fish reserves are said to be abundant due to presence of deep waters and the rocky formation. For Sri Lankan fishermen it is within their maritime boundary whereas for the Indian fishermen, crossing the boundary makes their act illegal. Sri Lanka does not like Indian fishermen fishing close to the Sri Lankan coast of Point Pedro, Delft and other coastal areas. Also, sea along the Indian side remains shallow and possibilities of huge fish catch remain very minimal.
2. Trawling affects seaweeds and corals and less catch is available for fishers on overlapping territorial waters. The steady upsurge of Indian trawlers is partly due to the relief funds doled out to Indian fishermen in the aftermath of the 2004 tsunami.
3. EU Ban of Lankan fisheries products in order to clamp down on illegal fishing  has adversely affected their livelihood. Failure by SL to implement obligations under UNCLOS.
4. Small fishers are restricted to shores and lack of technology hinders their catch and livelihood. Indian fishermen with technological aid, decrease their livelihoods opportunities.
5. Tamil Nadu had provided moral support to Tamils in their fight with the Lankan government leading to hostility. The recent death penalty for five Indian fishermen for drug smuggling added on to the problems.
6.  Sri Lankan side of palk strait is rich in tuna , prawns and the Indian fishermen cross over with disregard to the restrictions imposed by the Indian Navy and thus attacks are carried out by the Sri Lankan Navy.

Possible solutions?

1. Provision of bringing in the licensing system whereby Indian fishermen could be permitted to fish in Sri Lankan waters in specified areas or on specified days and vice versa.
2. India should regulate trawlers and discourage them from crossing the boundary and from Sri Lankan side they have stopped the false charges by coming out of LTTE issue.
3. Political will  to ensure that the rights of both the countries fishermen are protected within the respective territorial jurisdiction.
4. The use of technology like the Global positioning System (GPS), RADAR navigation system, Automatic Identification System (AIS) in coastal areas whenever they cross into another country’s waters.
5. Instituting a Palk Bay Authority for devising an integrated solution to the fishermen‘s problems encompassing their livelihood issues and commerce in the area.
6. India should provide technical advisory support to set up processing units for fishery products and promote other income generating activities in the agro-allied sectors.
7. State should subsidize schemes for fishermen to procure deep-sea fish.

Given the serious issues of livelihood on both sides of the Strait and the issue impacting Indo-Sri Lanka bilateral relations, authorities on both sides must act decisively.