Rajya Sabha Member Beedha Mastan Rao Yadav has mooted a proposal to procure high speed mechanised boats to strengthen the fishing capabilities of the fishermen of SPSR Nellore district, who have been recently facing onslaught due to incursion by fellow fishermen from Tamil Nadu and Puducherry.
The absence of such larger boats along the State’s coastline is widely felt as the reason for poaching from the neighbouring States. Such boats help the fishers travel deeper into the sea and stay for longer durations, which improves their livelihood sources in the form of a higher yield.
Denies charges
After the recent unauthorised release of the four seized Karaikal-based high speed boats from Juvvaladinne port, Mr. Yadav received backlash in the form of targeted accusations from the Opposition. Brushing aside the charges, he said he was ready to quit politics if the Opposition proved that he had acted against the interests of the local fishermen. He even wrote an open letter to Minister for IT Nara Lokesh about the issue and termed it a ‘malicious propaganda’.
“The incursion of boats has remained an inter-State issue for the past forty years. The Karaikal boats should fish 7 km away from our coast, but are regularly getting close to our shore, harming our fishermen’s interests”, he told The Hindu.
