Trivandrum: The Latin Catholic Diocese has urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit the Cyclone Ockhi-affected areas of Kerala and treat it as a national calamity, saying the Centre had not done enough to handle the situation.
The vicar-general of the diocese, Fr Eugene Pereira, told The Telegraph that the Prime Minister must visit and assess the loss of life and property as there was still no trace of more than 180 fishermen who had set out before the cyclone warning was issued.
During its journey along the Kerala coast toward Lakshwadeep, Cyclone Ockhi wreaked havoc and caused 39 deaths, some of them because of rain-related accidents. To press for their demand, the diocese will lead a march to Raj Bhavan on Monday.
“We expect around thousands in the march against the Centre’s apathy towards the fishing community, which bore much of the cyclone’s brunt,” Pereira said.
Latin Catholic members in the affected districts on Sunday prayed for the safe return of those still missing and laid out their demands for better handling of such calamities.
Some 400 fishermen have returned to Kerala’s ports, a good number of them rescue by the Indian Air Force, the navy and the coast guard.
But many of the missing fishermen are believed to have set sail in smaller boats that wouldn’t have stood a chance against the cyclone that swept the ocean at speeds of more than 110kmph.
Pereira said it was the duty of both the Centre and the state government to come to the aid of the fishing community and trace the missing fishermen. Fishermen have already registered their protest against the state government.
“According to our information, a number of them (in trawlers) may have landed in uninhabited islands in Lakshwadeep. But there is no trace of the fishermen who sailed out in their small boats or catamarans,” Pereira said.
“The Centre has not done enough. First, the cyclone warning was issued at 12 noon on November 30, when hundreds of boats were already in the high seas. They had no chance of escaping the cyclone. Then came the rescue missions. While we appreciate the work by the defence forces, the state and central governments could have handled things better,” he added.
A considerable number of the fishermen in Kerala are Latin Catholics. The Church has been liaising with the state government to ensure their safety.
“The central government has not even tried to understand the gravity of the situation. It’s never too late to overhaul the system as fishermen too are part of the society and contribute immensely to the national economy,” Pereira said.
Chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan had on Saturday called on Union home minister Rajnath Singh to seek financial aid of Rs 1,843 crore to mitigate the sufferings of the families affected by the cyclone and minimise damage from such calamities in the future. He also urged the Centre to continue the search operations for the missing fishermen.
T. Peter, the general secretary of the National Fishworkers’ Forum, told this newspaper that it would be difficult to find those in smaller boats. “Trawlers usually have 15-odd fishermen, while small boats can accommodate three or four,” he said.
He too felt the Centre had failed to address the situation. “This is a national calamity, let them formally treat it as one and deliver aid,” Peter said.
Peter criticised the Left government in Kerala for not doing anything about the long-standing demand for marine ambulances and satellite communication devices for fishermen.
“Our chief minister sought central aid, but did not even care to list our demands. Marine ambulances and satellite communication devices are essential elements of fishing activities. The stranded fishermen didn’t have any means to communicate their location to the harbours,” Peter said.
Fishermen on a boat that returned to Kochi on Sunday claimed to have seen at least four bodies in a highly decomposed state floating some 100 nautical miles off the coast. They told reporters that retrieving the bodies was impossible for them.
(Source: telegraphindia)