Kerala govt. bans fishing within 20-nautical mile radius of shipwreck, announces compensation for fishers

The Kerala government has banned fishing within a 20-nautical-mile radius of the capsized Liberian-flagged container ship which sank off the Kerala coast on May 25.
The State would give 6 kg of free rice and ₹1,000 a month to each affected fisher families in Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Alappuzha and Ernakulam districts.
At a press conference, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan quashed speculation that fish caught off the coast of Kerala was inedible. He said the shipwreck happened 14.6 miles off the Thottapally Spillway in the Alappuzha district. He said the containers carrying the highly flammable calcium carbide, stowed away in the ship's cargo hold, remained submerged and posed no immediate threat.
A maritime emergency vessel had set sail from Puducherry for the shipwreck site. The experts on board would use the latest underwater surveillance technology to map the wreck geospatially and designate the marine location using anchored floats. They would also use floating booms to contain any oil spill from the vessel.
He said the salvage operation would focus on draining the Very Low Sulphur Fuel Oil (VLSFO) stored in the ship's double hull expeditiously to prevent spillage. After the monsoons, the company would remove the wreck from Kerala's jurisdictional waters.
Mr. Vijayan said the ship also transported fruits, rubber, wooden beams, compounds, small plastic pellets (nurdles) and textiles. He warned fishers against salvaging any floating detritus from the wreck. He asked them to report it to the authorities instead.
Cleaning operations
Mr. Vijayan said piles of microplastics from the capsized ship had run ashore—contaminating the Thiruvananthapuram's shoreline. The government had initiated cleaning operations.
Enumerating loss
The Chief Minister stated that he had spoken to the Director General of Shipping, who agreed to spare the services of Deputy Nautical Officer Captain Ashok Joseph, a Keralite, to assist the State in enumerating the loss, including environmental damage and lost working days for fishers, caused by the shipwreck. He said Captain Joseph would work with the State government to collect evidence to claim damages from the shipping company under maritime laws. Mr. Vijayan said the shipwreck had also significantly impacted Kerala's beach and backwater tourism sectors.
The Protection and Indemnity Insurance Agency has opened a special desk for processing shipwreck-related claims in Kochi. He said Captain Joseph was the nodal officer and had experience working with other State governments to file maritime compensation claims.
Mr. Vijayan said the government would hand over 54 containers which washed ashore in Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam and Alappuzha districts to the Customs department.
The State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA) had initiated aerial drone surveys to scan the State's beaches for shipwreck detritus. Hundreds of volunteers were working to clean the beaches of microplastics from the shipwreck.

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

Business Standard

6 hours ago

• Business Standard

Kerala's fishing economy reels from back-to-back maritime disasters

Kerala's coastal communities are on edge after two major maritime accidents in the Arabian Sea within a short span, threatening not only fragile marine ecosystems but also the livelihoods of thousands who depend on them. The back-to-back incidents—first involving the MSC Elsa 3, followed by a fire aboard MV Wan Hai 503—have triggered bans on fishing, fears of contamination, and disruptions to the state's marine economy. According to Kerala Fisheries Statistics 2021, over one million people in the state depend directly or indirectly on fisheries, including more than 2.4 lakh active fishermen across 222 marine fishing villages. When did the incidents occur? The MSC ELSA-3, a Liberian-flagged container ship carrying 640 containers (including hazardous materials like calcium carbide), capsized and sank on May 25, about 38 nautical miles southwest of Kochi, off Kerala's coast. The MV Wan Hai 503, a Singapore-flagged container vessel, caught fire on June 9, roughly 78 nautical miles off Beypore, Kerala, following an under-deck explosion. After the MSC Elsa 3 shipwreck, authorities imposed an eight-day fishing ban within a 20-nautical-mile radius of the wreck site. The timing could not have been worse—it coincided with the onset of the monsoon season, typically a peak period for fish catch. In 2020-21, Kerala produced 6.15 lakh tonnes of fish and prawns, highlighting the scale of economic activity now at risk. The government's interim relief included ₹1,000 and 6 kg of rice per family, a measure many in the fishing community criticised as inadequate. 'June to September is when we earn the most. This amount doesn't even cover two days of work,' said a fisherman from the Alappuzha-Kollam region, highlighting how compensation fell below the daily minimum wage. Meanwhile, ongoing efforts to remove marine sediments from affected coastlines in Alappuzha, Kollam, and parts of Thiruvananthapuram have made uneven progress. Although communities have resumed fishing in some areas, fears of contamination persist. Environmental fears mount Experts say that while no mass fish deaths have been reported so far, the real danger may lie in delayed ecological impacts. 'If the water is not treated and sediments are not properly removed, this could lead to long-term consequences,' said a local fishing union representative. 'It's not just our community—this could affect people inland too, through the food chain and market supply.' Kollam, which usually lands around 35,000 tonnes of fish daily, has seen a steep drop in supply and demand alike. Several fish markets have reported little or no demand for days, as people are worried about possible contamination from hazardous cargo and oil spills. This has led to a direct loss of income for thousands of families who depend on fishing. According to Dr Sajeevan, professor at Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies (KUFOS), misinformation about contamination is already hurting fish sales. Many regular fish eaters are switching to alternatives like meat or avoiding fish from affected areas altogether, he said. Scientific teams deployed to assess impact The Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI) has deployed teams to assess environmental and economic fallout. The Kerala State Pollution Control Board and the National Institute of Oceanography are also expected to conduct studies on water quality and ecological recovery. 'Proper scientific monitoring and treatment are essential to contain long-term damage,' Dr Sajeevan added. 'We may not be seeing marine organism deaths now, but that doesn't rule out contamination. The impact on spawning, migration, and species diversity could emerge over time.' The way forward While cleanup operations are underway, fishers and environmentalists alike are demanding stricter regulation of maritime traffic near coastal zones and faster relief mechanisms. Experts are also calling for a contingency plan to protect coastal economies from future maritime mishaps. 'The government must establish a coordinated response framework that includes emergency cleanup, livelihood protection, and scientific risk assessments,' said a CMFRI official. 'Kerala's marine economy cannot afford repeated shocks.' For now, coastal families wait anxiously—not just for fish to return to their nets, but for assurance that their waters, and their futures, remain safe.

Scroll.in

a day ago

• Scroll.in

Second ship sinking off Kerala coast revives fears in Sri lanka of worst maritime disaster

Sri Lanka is once again facing a significant marine environmental crisis, as tiny plastic pellets, commonly known as nurdles, have begun washing ashore along the island's northern coastline. This time, the pollution is linked to the sinking of the Liberia-flagged container ship MSC ELSA 3 off of Kerala, India. The unfolding incident has triggered fears of a repeat of the X-Press Pearl disaster in 2021, the worst maritime disaster to have occurred in Sri Lanka, significantly impacting marine ecosystems and coastal communities. According to the Indian Coast Guard, the MSC ELSA 3, carrying 640 containers including hazardous cargo, sank on May 25, roughly 38 nautical miles off the Kerala coast. The cause was reportedly a failure of its ballast system. Indian authorities confirmed the vessel was loaded with an estimated 85 metric tonnes of diesel and 367 metric tonnes of furnace oil, in addition to at least 13 containers of dangerous substances such as calcium carbide. All 24 crew members were safely rescued by Indian Coast Guard and Navy teams. While Indian authorities were able to initially contain an oil spill, the environmental fallout soon escalated. Plastic nurdles released from sunken containers began appearing on beaches in southern India, and by June 11, ocean currents driven by strong gusts of southwest monsoon winds carried them toward Sri Lanka's northern shores, raising serious concerns among marine biologists and local communities. Fresh environmental fallout 'We've begun cleaning efforts and are evaluating coordinated response actions,' said Padma Abeykoon, additional secretary at the Ministry of Environment. With strong monsoon winds forecast for the coming days, she noted that ocean currents may bring even more pollutants ashore. According to Abeykoon, Indian authorities had alerted Sri Lanka about the possibility of debris from the sunken vessel drifting toward its shores, depending on ocean current patterns. The plastic pellets first arrived on the northern islands and reached the Mannar coast within a day, continuously washing up along Sri Lanka's southern-facing beaches. One of the earliest reports from Sri Lanka came from Lahiru Walpita, a birdwatcher in Mannar, who observed the nurdles during his routine early morning seabird monitoring. 'On June 12, I noticed strange white pebbles scattered across the Mannar beach. A closer look revealed they were plastic nurdles, something I sadly recognise from the X-Press Pearl spill,' Walpita said. Walpita initially assumed the rough seas had opened up a remnant of X-Press Pearl, but as he discovered 20 25-kg bags of nurdles strewn across a 2-km stretch of the beach in Mannar, he realised something was wrong. Out of these, only two bags were damaged, and others were in perfect shape, Walpita told Mongabay. Walpita also observed crows and an egret investigating the pellets but hadn't consumed them. 'However, seabirds, like little terns and bridled terns, feed off the ocean surface while in flight and I fear they could mistake these pellets for food as they have little time to observe,' he warned. The breeding season for these species, especially on tiny islands nearby in Adam's Bridge Marine National Park, runs from May to September, and Walpita fears the nurdle invasion could disrupt their reproductive cycles. Temporary ban Meanwhile, Indian authorities imposed a temporary fishing ban within 20 nautical miles of the MSC ELSA 3 wreck to mitigate risks from hazardous cargo. One of the most concerning chemicals on board was calcium carbide, which reacts violently with water to release acetylene – a highly flammable and potentially explosive gas – and produces caustic substances harmful to marine life. 'The ship sank about 300 nautical miles from Sri Lanka, so we don't anticipate immediate chemical contamination threat for Sri Lankan waters,' said Jagath Gunasekara, general manager of Sri Lanka's Marine Environment Protection Authority. 'However, we are conducting continuous water quality tests and have activated the National Oil and Hazardous Noxious Substances Spill Contingency Plan to remain prepared,' he added. Adding to the urgency, Indian authorities are battling another maritime emergency just two weeks after the ELSA 3 incident. On June 7, the Singapore-flagged container ship MV Wan Hai 503 caught fire following multiple explosions, approximately 88 nautical miles off the coast of Kerala. The vessel, carrying more than 2,128 metric tonnes of fuel and numerous containers with hazardous materials, poses a potentially greater environmental risk than ELSA 3. As of June 18, Indian Coast Guard reports indicated that the fire was under control. The drifting vessel has since been secured and successfully towed away. Nurdle spill The nurdles are highly persistent in the marine environment, as they can absorb toxic chemicals and enter the food chain, posing a risk to marine life and potentially humans as research on the aftermath of X-Press Pearl disaster proves. The parallels of these disasters with the X-Press Pearl disaster are striking. The 2021 incident released billions of nurdles into the Indian Ocean, contaminating beaches for months, killing marine organisms and disrupting fishing livelihoods. One silver lining is that a lot of research was conducted following the X-Press Pearl disaster, and this can be informative in tackling the ongoing episode of the nurdle pollution, Gunasekara said. Even today, Sri Lanka is fighting for adequate compensation, with legal proceedings dragging on in international courts. The echoes of that catastrophe now serve as a grim warning: unless stronger regional protocols and maritime safety measures are enforced, the region could be doomed to repeat history.

The Hindu

2 days ago

• The Hindu

Chittoor gears up for Yoga Day fete, 9 lakh likely to participate

The district administration is geared up for the 11th International Yoga Day celebrations scheduled at the Mesanical Grounds here on Saturday (June 21). Over 9 lakh people are expected to take part in the massive programme across 5,808 habitations in the district. Addressing the media here on Friday (June 20), District Collector Sumit Kumar stressed on the need for proper planning and prompt execution of the event. Lauding the officials, NGOs, and public groups for the State-led 'Yogandhra 2025' campaign, the Collector urged officials not to lose momentum and ensure that each venue has adequate facilities, with top priority to drinking water, snacks, toilets, and medical camps. Mr. Kumar instructed the officials to mobilise the yoga participants based on the capacity of each venue. He said that the public address systems, photo, and videography were mandatory, and the footage should be uploaded on the official app by 10 am of the same day. The Collector directed the special officers at the mandal level, municipal commissioners, and MPDOs, to participate and oversee arrangements. He said that the public representatives from village to district levels should be formally invited to give a fillip to the event. The programme will be held at the Mesanical Grounds from 7 a.m. to 8 a.m. The Collector said that Yoga instructors will be posted at all the venues to guide the participants.