Absence of groynes in Pulicat Lake affects our livelihood: Fisherfolks

While they withdrew the protest on Tuesday after officials held talks with them, fishermen told DT Next that they have no other option but to go on a protest again if their demands were not taken seriously. Their angst is palpable given the fact that they have been at the receiving end of the problem for more than eight years, even after the then Chief Minister O Panneerselvam, Fisheries Minister D Jayakumar and several officials inspected the river mouth in person and ordered a permanent solution.

Spread across 481 sqkm, Pulicat Lake near Ponneri is the second largest lake in the country after Chilika in Odisha. Kalangi and Sornamugi rivers from Andhra Pradesh, Arani River and Buckingham Canal from However, the waste and sand washed in by the rivers leads to sedimentation in the lake, resulting in seawater intrusion into estuaries. Also, ever since tsunami hit this region, the sudden formation of sand dunes prevent seawater from entering the lake and vice versa and thus affecting the natural phenomenon of any estuary. It prevents fishermen to go fishing in the sea affecting their livelihood. 

The Fisheries Department joint director Ilango, assistant director Velan and other officials who held talks with the fishermen have told them a proposal to desilt the lake at a cost of Rs 27 crore has been sent to the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests for clearance. As a temporary measure, the officials have assured that the lake would be desilted in parts at a cost of Rs 8 lakh in October and November.