The Tirunelveli Kadalora Mavatta Meenavar Kooturavu (Tirunelveli District Coastal Fishermen’s Association) has threatened to organise a strong protest against the use of high-speed and capacity Chinese-made engines in fishing boats by their counterparts in Kanyakumari district. President of the fishermen association in Tirunelveli district C. Jones told TOI that there were around 10 coastal hamlets in the district where around 10,000 families depended on fishing for a living. “Only country boats are in use in this district and around 1,500 country boats in the hamlets here,” he said. He said that fishermen of Chinna Muttom Harbour in Kanyakumari district have been using high power Chinese boat engines and poising a threat to the lives and livelihood of the country boat fishermen of Tirunelveli by operating their boats close to Tirunelveli. “Crossing Tirunelveli they even go till Tuticorin,” he alleged. Stating that there were around 200 such boats operating from Chinna Muttom, Jones added that they were also violating the Tamil Nadu Marine Fishing Regulation Act, 1983.