Kerala fishing community strikes against offshore mining

Fish landing centres and fishing markets remained shut and fisherfolk hit the streets on Thursday as part of the 24-hour "coastal hartal" across Kerala against the Union government's move to auction five blocks off the state's coast to mine sand and other minerals from the sea.

- HT Correspondent

KOCHI:

The coastal strike was called by the Fisheries Coordination Committee (FCC) which comprises members of trade unions allied to the Left parties and the Congress.

The strike began at midnight on Thursday with fishing vessels anchored to the coast, fish sales and fish processing units coming to a standstill and thousands of fisherfolk participating in protest meetings across the state throughout the day.

The fishing organisations said that the move to conduct offshore mining near the Kerala coast will affect the marine ecosystem, particularly fish produce, thereby harming the livelihoods of fishing communities.