Kerala fishermen sail out to find missing men
In two fishing hamlets in Thiruvananthapuram, at least 80 fishermen are still missing; locals vent anger against state government
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM/NEW DELHI: Angry fishermen defied warnings of the state government and the Met office and ventured into the sea on Sunday in search of their missing colleagues even as two more bodies were recovered, taking the toll in Cyclone Ockhi to 26 in the state.
At least 40 boats set out into the sea early on Sunday to search for the missing men even as hope of their survival began to fade. Within 30 minutes, one of the boats returned with a bloated body that was yet to be identified. The IAF helicopters, meanwhile, continued search missions.
In Vizhinjam and Poonthura, two fishing hamlets in Thiruvananthapuram district, at least 80 fishermen are still missing. Another 40 are reported to be missing from other areas. “We tried our best to pacify people but time is running out and they are simmering with anger. The state government handled the disaster with kid gloves. It is sad that human lives are so cheap here,” said Poonuthura parish priest Father Justin Rudin. He said the state machinery was ineffective in handling the disaster and gave full credit to MP Shashi Tharoor for coordinating rescue and relief measures with Delhi.
The state government, however, denied that its response was lethargic. “We have done everything possible. It is natural for emotions to rise on such occasions. The joint rescue operation team saved more than 400 fishermen,” state tourism minister Kadakampally Surendran said.
‘STATES WERE WARNED’
Union minister Harsh Vardhan, in charge of science & technology, environment, forest and climate change and earth sciences ministries, on Sunday said Ockhi had moved from Lakshadweep and was now about 1,000km southwest of Surat in Gujarat. It was likely to move in northeasterly direction and gradually weaken.
He said rescue operations were in full swing by the coast guard and Indian Navy.
The minister said the Met department had started sending out warnings for heavy rainfall and strong winds in Kerala and south Tamil Nadu from 28 November itself. “On November 29 afternoon, IMD issued the first bulletin of the cyclone warning and conveyed to all district officials, state disaster management authority and the chief secretary. In the first bulletin, the possibility of the system intensifying into a cyclonic storm was mentioned. There was clear message for fishermen not to venture into the sea during next 48 hours,” he said.
He said the bulletin was repeated every three hours, including on the night of November 29. Adverse weather hit the Kerala coast only on the morning of November 30.