Kerala murders: Unruly waters could be a security menace

Chennai: Following the murderous attack by the Italian ship Enrica Lexie two weeks ago, the incident on Thursday, in which an unknown oil tanker rammed into a fishing boat close to the Kerala coast killing two men, has spread panic and outrage among fisherfolk on the western coast. That the rogue ship could just speed away despite the presence of a formidable southern naval command and a fleet of coast guard in Kochi has raised serious security concerns as well. In security terms, this is worse than Kasab and company landing on Bombay coast and running amuck. They could come and get away in a ship now. Three fishermen are still missing and they are also likely to be dead. The boat carried seven men, of which only two have reached the shore alive following the incident. The coastal district of Kollam in southern Kerala has plunged into deep sorrow and anger. [caption id=“attachment_232092” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“Mishaps at sea. AFP”]  [/caption] Although the misadventure of the trigger-happy Italian naval guards has brought the insecurity of the Kerala fishermen to national attention, similar incidents had happened in the past too. Reports indicate that at least 15 fishermen had died in recent years. In 2010, two such incidents had been reported; in one, there was no death, while in the other, two men lost their lives. The only case of fixing accountability, that one can recall in the recent past, was when a Russian ship was traced and made to pay compensation. Kochi has a modern Vessel Tracking System (VTS), which records all the details of the vessels passing through the shipping channel on the western coast, including their coordinates; hence the coast guard and navy should have intercepted the ship without much difficulty, say experts. That the incident happened in the dead of the night (roughly at 12.45 am) but the coastal police got alerted only by 2 am, and the ship immediately switched off its lights while speeding away cannot be excuses when one has modern technology and a patrol fleet. While the Kerala fisheries minister Shibu Baby John expressed confidence that the ship could be traced, experts say that it is highly unlikely. The coast guard apparently has identified 11 ships that passed through the channel at the time of the incident, but zeroing in on the culprit is more or less out of question now. There were reports that the suspected ship was subsequently spotted on Kulachal coast in Tamil Nadu. The incident has serious socio-economic, political and security ramifications. The fisherfolk on the coast of Kerala have been in dire straits for quite some time. The marine resources near the coast have drastically depleted because of various reasons including bad fishing practices, and hence the fisherfolk are forced to go into deep seas. International vessels illegally sweeping the seafloor in India’s fishing zone that extends up to 200 nautical miles also have severely damaged India’s marine ecology and has affected the availability of fish and the future of the marine economy. Fishermen say that they stay in high seas, often at 12 - 15 nautical miles, for several days at a stretch for a decent catch. The boat that was hit on Thursday had left the shore on Sunday night and was planning to return on Friday. Once at sea, they spread the net and wait. They also keep shifting along with their fishing net. The ships are not expected to sail this close and whenever they stray, the boats do not get enough time to move out of the way. On Thursday, the unknown tanker cut through two boats and one of them could escape just in the nick of time. There were at least 25 fishing boats, with lights on, at sea at the time of the incident and hence the ship should have certainly noted their presence and got out of the way or slowed down, say the survivors. Unfortunately, although fishing and marine exports are a mainstay of Kerala’s economy, the fisherfolk - mostly Latin Catholic - have no social or political influence in Kerala. Since the late Baby John, the community is yet to find an influential leader. Almost all prominent Christian leaders in the state politics are from the more influential and economically powerful Syrian Christians. Ironically, it is the fisherfolk that always bear the brunt when it comes to political struggles - right from the time of the first communist government in the state. It is a sad commentary on the class stratification in Kerala’s Christian politics. Maritime experts say that such incidents are on the rise because ships sail close to the Kerala coast to keep away from the threat of Somalian pirates in Indian ocean. India’s local waters extend up to 12 nautical miles, followed by a contiguous sea. Although ships are permitted to sail through this region, India has economic rights up to 200 nautical miles or roughly 380 kilometres. The crews of the ships that routinely sail in the region do know the areas of fishing activity and hence such “accidents” should not occur. The security concerns pertain to the failure of the central and state governments in effective maritime enforcement, which makes the western coast porous and dangerous. The Kerala police has a coastal police unit in the area with a fleet of high speed boats acquired recently at a cost of Rs 3 crores. However, when the incident was reported, the boats weren’t in working condition. Similarly, despite the VTS and a three-ship fleet of the coast guard searching the sea, the ship couldn’t be traced. A VTS commissioned at the Kandla port in Gujarat recently is among the best in the world and also should have tracked the ship. If the central and state agencies do not wake up from their inefficiency, the coast is likely to see more such incidents. Ships will continue to sail past the western coast, thanks to the fear of the Somali pirates, and the traffic is likely to increase when the Kochi-Vallarpadam container terminal becomes busier. They will certainly come into clash with Indian fishing boats as the latter venture deeper and deeper into the sea in search of their livelihood. It is going to be an absolute mess at sea, if there is no timely action. Short cuts and patch ups will not work. The situation needs a comprehensive plan that addresses the needs of fisherfolk and their socio-political marginalisation, marine ecology, maritime security and enforcement.