By Venkatachari Jagannathan, IANS,
Chennai : The fishing community in Poompuhar, one of the coastal districts affected by the 2004 tsunami, is now looking forward to a new beginning in 2010, thanks to the setting up of a centre to process their catch.
The question of how to help those who lost their livelihood was debated at the city-based M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF) soon after the Indian Ocean tsunami hit the Tamil Nadu coast in December 2004.
With the government and non-governmental organisations (NGO) offering free houses, boats and other things, MSSRF decided to embark upon a long-term initiative to provide sustainable livelihood solutions to the Poompuhar people.
The result is the Rs.2.7 crore (Rs. 27 million) Fish for All Research and Training Centre on a two-acre plot at Poompuhar or Kaveripoompattinam, around 350 km from here.
“The centre was established with support from Jamsetji Tata Trust and the Tata Education Trust towards a holistic approach for the coastal community in the field of resource management, sustainable livelihood options,” MSSRF Senior Director Sudha Nair told IANS.
It will function as a research/training-cum- demonstration centre for strengthening and diversifying the existing livelihoods and identifying alternative livelihoods for fishing families and the coastal communities.
The 24,000-square foot centre houses two cold storage rooms, ice plants, a fish pre-processing hall conforming to HACCP (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points) standards, a research laboratory, a training hall, a dormitory, a village resource centre that would give information on climate, sea wave height, potential fishing zones and other market related data.
“Fishermen can bring their catch, get it pre-processed, store it in our cold storages and sell when there is demand instead of continuing with the current practice of capture-consumption,” remarked Nair.
The pre-processing activities (cleaning, sorting, removing the scales and others) will be done by trained fisherwomen.
“The women will be trained for a week at the centre that confirms to HACCP standards thereby increasing their chances of finding a job at full-fledged processing plants,” principal coordinator Sanjeevi Raj told IANS.
“The times are difficult. I hope the training will help me increase the family’s total income,” K. Saroja, who will undergo the training, told IANS.
Though fisherwomen do most of the pre-processing activities at home they still find the training a novel experience.
“At home we use aruvamanai (a traditional Indian vegetable cutter) to cut the fish sitting on the floor. Here we use broad blade stainless steel knife standing near a table. I think the work gets done faster here,” a trainee told IANS.
“We have assisted in the formation of women self-help groups and have trained around 100 women in making value-added products like pickles, fish powder and others,” Raj said.
“Going forward there are plans to start a full-fledged processing division to carry out activities like slicing, packaging of fish to increase the catch realisation,” said Nair.
About the location, Nair said: “The fish catch volume in this region is between 8 and 10 tonnes a day. There is also about 500 hectares of shrimp farming taking place in and around Poompuhar.”
The state government will be building a mini-harbour there and a shrimp unit is being planned by a private group in Poompuhar which is expected to generate demand for the services offered by the centre.
As a part of the initiative, MSSRF has tied up with the Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) and has set up a college for coastal communities to offer certified short- term training courses that will enhance the skill sets of fisher men/women, fish vendors, non- traditional fishermen and others.
“The fishermen will be trained in use of technology to get market- related information, sea climate and potential catch zones. We will train them on climate resilient work culture,” V.N. Rajasekharan Pillai, vice chancellor of IGNOU, told IANS.
(Venkatachari Jagannathan can be contacted at [email protected])