Signing of FTA will push fishing sector into deep crisis
UNI | 3 August 200
Signing of FTA will push fishing sector into deep crisis
Thiruvananthapuram, Aug 1 : Stating that the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with ASEAN countries would push the fishing sector into deep crisis in the state, Kerala Swatantra Matsya Thozhilali Federation (KSMTF) today urged the Centre to go back from its decision to sign the agreement.
Talking to newspersons here, KSMTF State President T Peter said his organisation and the National Fish Workers Forum, in a memorandum to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Agriculture Minister Sarad Pawar and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, had urged the government to not move ahead with the agreement as it would adversely affect the fishermen in the state.
Instead of finding solutions to various crisis faced by the fishing sector, the move to sign the agreement would push the fishing sector into deep crisis, he alleged.
Charging that the Center was closing its eye towards catching of fish by foreign trawlers from our sea, he said the government had not implemented the Murari Committee’s recommendation to cancel the license of foreign fishing trawlers.
Mr Peter said though the fishing sector was also under the agriculture sector, they were not getting any benefit, including tax reduction of outboard engines to four per cent from the 12 per cent, as in the case of agriculture sector.
He said the general council meeting of the KSMTF on August 16 would chalk out the future course of action.
