Trade unions representing
fish workers have protested that the state government failed to honor
the commitment that K S Purushan, former dean, Kerala University of
Fisheries and Ocean Studies (KUFOS) will be included in the expert
committee constituted to study the controversies related to the much
celebrated seaplane project.
The expert committee includes
Madhusoodhana Kurup, VC, KUFOS, K G Padmakumar, former director of
Regional Agricultural Research Station, Kumarakom, Suman Billa, tourism
secretary, S Anil Kumar,general manager, Kerala Tourism Infrastructure
Limited and an expert from CMFRI.
T J Anjelose, former MP and
president of the Kerala State Fish Workers Federation(AITUC) said that
there was a meeting on Tuesday in Thiruvananthapuram to discuss the
controversies related to the seaplane project.
According to him, a
consensus was reached in that meeting, which was attended by the
Minister of Tourism, the Minister of Fisheries, tourism secretary, other
senior officials and senior trade union leaders, about the formation of
the committee.
“All trade unions unanimously suggested the name
of K S Purushan, who is considered an expert in fisheries sciences and
the coastal economy. The ministers and other officials had agreed to
this. But later, his name was omitted and S Anil Kumar, a key official
behind the project was included. His name was not discussed in the
consultation between trade unions and the government”, Anjelose said.
He added that AITUC would not cooperate with the committee if the government fails to honour the initial commitment.
“I
have formally written to the tourism minister”, he said. V V
Sashindran, general convenor, Kerala Fisheries Coordination Committee
said that he will also write to the government to stick to the initial
stand.
“The tourism department lacked transparency and was
undemocratic from the very beginning of the project. Initially, they
promised that they would launch the project only after proper
consultation with the fishing community. But they launched the
operations in an arbitrary manner and thus it was met with militant
protest from the people”, he said. A P Anil Kumar, Minister for Tourism,
said that the newly constituted committee will look into all dimensions
of the controversy objectively.
Source: http://newindianexpress.com