Thirteen years after the release of a notification mandating representation from local fishing communities in district-level committees, the state government has finally decided to include three fishermen as members of the district coastal zone management authority (DCZMA). Chennai is among the first districts to implement the notification and Collector Rashmi Sidharth Zagade has issued an order approving Jeyakumar from Washermanpet, K Bharati from Nochikuppam, and K Saravanan from Uroorkuppam as members of DCZMA for a tenure of three years.
As per Section 6(c) of the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) notification 2011, district-level committees must have at least three representatives from local coastal communities, including fisherfolk. Despite repeated appeals, the notification was not complied and TNIE had written about this issue.
The order dated January 1, 2024 was issued pursuant to the request from member secretary of Tamil Nadu State Coastal Zone Management Authority. The newly-formed DCZMA for Chennai with the district collector as chairman have 12 members. Officials told TNIE that all coastal district collectors have been directed to nominate local coastal community representatives in their respective DCZMAs soon.
K Saravanan, one of the selected members, termed the decision “historical”. “The government has been denying our rights for more than a decade. Only fishermen would know about traditional fishing grounds and if the proposed project hampers their livelihood.” Bharathi, another selected member, said, “The beaches are the livelihood spaces of fishing communities. The developmental works can’t compromise the communities’ interests. Now that we are part of the DCZMA, we can give our opinion or at least we won’t be left in the dark.”