The boat accident off the Kochi coast on Saturday night has forced fisheries unions to reiterate their call for stronger safety measures and strict monitoring of fishing operations to prevent such incidents in the future. The accident, involving a traditional fishing boat, did not cause any loss of life. A coastal police official said the 10 people on board the vessel had been rescued, and that the boat had floated towards the Edavanakkad coast later. Modern and safer fishing operations are the need of the hour, said Charles George of Matsya Thozhilali Aikya Vedi on Sunday. According to him, Saturday’s incident and the one that happened off the Kollam coast in the last week of August highlight the need for better coordination and supervision of fishing operations. The marine enforcement wing had saved eight fishermen after their vessel had sunk after catching fire off the southwest coast in September. Meanwhile, Joseph Xavier Kalappurakkal of Kerala Boat Operators’ Association said most of the 700 big boats had been colour-coded and safety measures implemented on the instructions of the Fisheries Department. Mr. George said the measures adopted by the Fisheries Department in recent days had been effective in preventing juvenile fishing. The marine enforcement wing has seized more than a dozen fishing vessels for not following colour code and lack of registration.