Fishermen to begin two-day protest against Shivaji memorial today

Mumbai: Though the state government is gearing up for a grand ceremony of laying the foundation stone for the Shivaji memorial in the Arabian Sea, about 5,000 fishermen will carry out a protest on Friday and Saturday by sailing their boats in the sea and also on the roads. The fishermen have been opposing the memorial as it will impact their livelihood and restrict their area of fishing. The community has also gone to court against the memorial, which they claim will destroy marine life.

At present, the Navy and Coast Guard have seized the sea route as Prime Minister Narendra Modi would be visiting the memorial spot, which is 1.4 km into the sea. Fishermen are not being permitted to go into the sea. However, breaking the protocol, the fishermen are going to sail their boats from Badhwar Park in Colaba till Girgaum Chowpatty to mark their protest. “We have full respect for Shivaji Maharaj. In fact, our community has guarded his forts earlier in history. But this memorial would hamper our livelihood. We have been asked to stay away from the sea for the last two days just for the PM’s visit. But once the memorial is built, we will be forced to stop fishing. The government has claimed that about 27,000 people would be visiting the place every day after the completion of the memorial, but it means our movement would be restricted and the environment would also be in danger,” said Damodar Tandel, the chief of fishermen association.

Meanwhile, PWD minister Chandrakant Patil said, “We held discussions with the fishermen and their issues would be resolved... We are ready to set up a committee to look into their issues.”