Chennai: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin has been consistently urging the Centre to take decisive steps against the frequent arrests of TN fishermen by the Sri Lankan Navy and ensure their release, Finance Minister Thangam Thennarsu told the State Assembly on Friday.
Presenting the Budget for the year 2025-26 in the House, he said additionally, to support
the owners of boats seized by the Sri Lankan authorities, the compensation for fishing
boats that have remained unrecovered for a long time has been increased to Rs.8 lakh,
while the compensation for the country’s motorized boats has been raised to Rs.2 lakh.
He said Mr Stalin has also ordered to increase the daily financial assistance for the families
of fishermen detained in Sri Lankan prisons from Rs.350 to Rs.500.
“Our State Government, which is deeply committed to the welfare of fishermen who risk
their lives for their livelihood braving sea storms and cyclones, has consistently been
increasing the subsidies given to support them”, he said.
In this financial year, a financial allocation of Rs.381 crore has been made to provide subsidies, including Rs.6,000 each to 1,79,147 fishermen as assistance for lean fishing period; Rs.3,000 each to 2,10,850 fishermen and 2,03,290 fisherwomen to encourage savings during the lean fishing period; and Rs.8,000 each to 1,98,923 fishermen during the fishing ban period, comprising Rs.1,500 from the Union Government and an additional State Government’s contribution of Rs.6,500.
Furthermore, a sum of Rs.286 crore has been allocated for the supply of diesel and kerosene at subsidized rates in this Budget, Mr Thennarasu said.
To mitigate the risks posed by sea erosion due to climate change, safeguard socio-economically vital coastal infrastructure, and implement short, medium and long-term development strategies, the National Centre for Coastal Research (NCCR), in coordination with the State Directorate of Environment, will conduct a comprehensive coastline management study.
Further, to help the economic development of fishermen, infrastructure facilities including fish landing centres and fishing net mending facilities will be established in the districts of Kanyakumari, Nagapattinam, Thoothukudi, Tirunelveli, Ramanathapuram, Cuddalore, Thiruvarur, Pudukkottai, Mayiladuthurai, Thanjavur, Villupuram, Thiruvallur, Chengalpattu and Chennai.
