Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa laid the foundation stone for building six fish landing centres in the district, fulfilling the long-pending demand of the fishermen, and launched the much-awaited subsidy scheme for tuna longliners through videoconferencing here on Wednesday.
Ms. Jayalalithaa also laid the foundation stone for building an Integrated Fisheries Department Office complex at a cost of Rs 1. 8 crore even as Collector K. Nanthakumar and fishermen association leader Devadoss thanked her for launching the 50 per cent subsidy scheme for tuna longliners, a first of its kind in the country, and building fish landing centres.
The government had designed the subsidy scheme to wean away fishermen of the Palk Bay area from trawler fishing to tuna longliners and avoid conflicts with Sri Lankan navy.
The government had selected batches of beneficiary fishermen from Nagapattinam, Pudukottai and Ramanathapuram. They were offered a subsidy of Rs. 30 lakh each for constructing longliners, which cost about Rs. 60 lakh.
The fish landing centres would be established at Dhanushkodi, Muhuntharayar Chathiram, Thangachimadam, Pamban, Vedalai and T Mariyur at a total cost of Rs. 44.70 crore, official sources said. The first three landing centres would have boat jetties, while the Pamban centre would have wharf with diapharm wall, the sources said.
They would have auction centres, fish drying platforms and concrete roads. Barring the centres at Dhanushkodi and Muhuntharayar Chathiram, the others would have facilities for net mending, the sources added.
The construction work on these centres and fisheries office building would begin soon and would be completed in a year, the sources said.
The fish landing centres were built with financial assistance from National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (Rural Infrastructure Development Fund), the sources added.
Deputy Director of Fisheries M. Kasinatha Pandian, Fishermen Association leader P. Sesu Raja and Fisherwomen Federation leader K. Iruthaya Mary were present.
