Katchatheevu demands thinking outside the box

Katchatheevu demands thinking outside the box

It would be unwise to attempt to create a Berlin Wall in the Palk Strait; instead, the Palk Bay must be thought of as the common heritage of India and Sri Lanka

Rise of a solution to the Indian fishermen’s issue with Sri Lanka

1  In a public meeting at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)’s headquarters, 19 of the fishermen spoke about the - 

2 ceding of Katchatheevu and how Indian fishermen were being shot by the Sri Lankan Navy. 

3 but writer asked some questions : 

 “Do the Sri Lankan Tamil fishermen have the right to fish in their waters?” 

Problem is two sided

. On the one side are the two governments which do not want to reopen the issue of Katchatheevu. 

On the other side are the Indian fishermen who will not easily give up a means of livelihood which they have enjoyed for several years.

There are two interrelated issues 

1 First, the unilateral scrapping of a bilateral agreement will have profound consequences not only on India-Sri Lanka relations but also with several of India’s other neighbouring countries. 

2 . At the same time, the Centre should be urged to take immediate steps to ensure the livelihood of fishermen on both sides of the Palk Strait. 

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a peaceful solution

1 This writer’s research on the subject began in early 1990. 

2 The objective was to find a peaceful solution so that the livelihood of the fishermen was not in end.

3 Katchatheevu as Bhoodan 

In 1974, Atal Bihari Vajpayee was in the Opposition. In a debate in the Lok Sabha, he characterised the gifting of Katchatheevu as Bhoodan.

 He asked BJP leader Jana Krishnamurthy to file a case in the Madras High Court seeking judicial remedy. 

4 But  Jana’s appeal was dismissed because he could not produce even a shred of evidence to prove that Katchatheevu was a part of the Zamindari of the Raja of Ramnad and that once the Zamindari was abolished, it had become a part of the Madras Presidency.

 two suggestions of writer

1 First, get back the island of Katchatheevu on lease in perpetuity /  endless — Tin Bigha in reverse. 

The sovereignty of Sri Lanka would be upheld but India could use the island and the surrounding waters for the purpose of fishing as a result of lease in perpetuity. 

Those days, Tamil Nadu fishermen did not venture far into Sri Lankan waters.

2  The second suggestion was to allow Indian fishermen to fish in Sri Lankan waters up to five nautical miles

 Under the 1976 Agreement, Sri Lankan fishermen were permitted to fish near the Wadge Bank, near Kanniyakumari, for three years. 

While the Tamil Nadu governments (both the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam) accepted this writer’s suggestions, the greatest obstacle was in the form of New Delhi refusing to reopen the issue.

Introduction of trawling

1 crisis , prawns and export and trwaler 

In the 1960s and 1970s, India faced a severe financial crisis. Indira Gandhi gave several incentives for ventures that earned foreign exchange. 

At that time prawns were a great delicacy in Japan and the European countries. 

As a result, bottom trawlers were introduced in the Palk Bay.

2  The ethnic conflict 

was a godsend for the Indian fishermen. The Sri Lankan government had banned fishing and the Tamil fishermen from Sri Lanka came to India as refugees.

3 They were employed by trawler owners and with their guidance, Indian fishermen began venturing deep into Sri Lankan waters. India’s foreign exchange earnings went up, but most of it was due to prawns that were caught in Sri Lankan waters.

3 The use of bottom trawlers did incalculable harm to the sea bed

 The trawlers swept away everything from the sea bed, resulting in no fish being available on the Indian side of the Palk Bay. 

Indian fishermen have to enter Sri Lankan waters to fish. And Sri Lankan fishermen began to complain that Indian trawlers would also destroy their sea bed. What is more, bottom trawlers are banned in Sri Lanka.

. By early 1974, Mrs. Gandhi was determined to cede / give the island

 1 According to S.P. Jagota, then Director of the Legal and Treaties Division, Mrs Gandhi overruled the views of senior officials.

 

2 What is more, she was even prepared to modify the median line so that Katchatheevu would fall on the Sri Lankan side. 

3 The Agreement, however, provided for the continued use of Sri Lankan waters around the island for the purposes of fishing, but this right was also given up त्यागना under the 1976 Agreement.

M. Karunanidhi’

1  Before the signing of the Agreement, then Foreign Secretary Kewal Singh visited Madras to hold discussions.

2  M. Karunanidhi should have followed the stance taken by B.C. Roy, who went to the Supreme Court of India on the issue of transfer of Berubari to East Pakistan.

3  B.C. Roy submitted evidence that Beru Bari was an integral part of India and to give away Indian territory to a foreign country, the Constitution would have to be amended. The Court upheld the claim.

4 M. Karunanidhi should have filed a case in the Court and prevented the ceding of the island. 

Instead, he got a resolution passed by the State Legislative Assembly. A resolution on a subject exclusively under the Centre’s jurisdiction is not binding, whereas a judicial decision is binding on all concerned.

यदि श्रीलंका इंटरनेशनल कोर्ट में केस दर्ज करता है तो

1 And, if the Sri Lankan government were to file a case in the International Court of Justice — as the Philippines did against China a few years ago — India’s image in the comity of nations would take a nose dive. 

राष्ट्रों के बीच भारत की छवि को भारी नुकसान पहुंचेगा। 

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The need for bold decisions

1 Here are two suggestions

• The first essential prerequisite is for the Government of India to ban all fishing equipment which are banned in Sri Lanka.
  

•  And then, we should work to ensure that fishermen can equitably enjoy the rich marine wealth. 
  

There can be a formula:

•  Sri Lankan fishermen can fish in the Palk Bay for three days, while Indian fishermen can fish on the other three days. 
  

• One day can be a holiday. 
  

2 Second, let us encourage the Tamil fishermen of both countries to meet, form cooperative societies, and venture into deep-sea fishing. The trawlers can be modified into vessels that can assist the mother ship.

Such joint ventures will also help repair the damage Indian fishermen have caused to the livelihood of their Tamil counterparts. It is only bold initiatives such as these that can lead to a win-win situation.

Source the hindu