Southern States - Karnataka   

Fishermen hit as Karnataka STF seizes boats

By A.V. Ragunathan

SALEM DEC. 31. Two hundred fishermen living on the banks of the Cauvery have been prevented from carrying on their avocation by the Karnataka Special Task Force on the plea that they might provide the escape avenue to the forest brigand, Veerappan. Since the death of the former Karnataka Minister, Nagappa, in the jungles, the STF has tightened its grip over the movement of fishermen, according to the fact-finding committee of the People's Watch. Following complaints of harassment in the hands of the STF personnel, the director of People's Watch, Henry Tiphagne, had deputed a three-member committee, comprising A. Asokan, legal counsellor, P.G. Vidhyasagar, monitoring associate, and Nicholas, an advocate.

Mr. Asokan told The Hindu that on Monday the committee visited the hamlets, stretching over a distance of 30 km from Athoor to Markottai (another name for Hogenakkal), and met the fishermen and their families. He alleged that the Karnataka STF had put a ban on the movement of the country boats, "coracles", from the Tamil Nadu side.

The STF personnel were apprehensive that the fishermen might carry food, medicines and other commodities for the Veerappan gang. They were of the opinion that if the movement of the fishermen was checked, the likely supply of essential commodities to the fugitives could either be curtailed or stopped and the escape route of Veerappan stalled. Mr. Asokan said the STF personnel had seized 130 coracles from the fishermen and stocked them in the premises of the Forest Guest House at Gopinatham. They were not sure how long the STF would keep the coracles under its custody. The coracles were the only means of transportation for the people of these hamlets.

Fifty students from Tamil Nadu are studying in the one-teacher school at Athoor, which was said to have been started by Nagappa (his constituency). Following the STF's "harsh measures," these students could not attend school for the past 20 days, and the people of these hamlets could not move out to procure their daily requirements.

Mr. Asokan said that one STF man in civil dress was always posted in the hamlet to keep round-the-clock vigil, and none could either enter or leave the hamlet without reporting to the personnel. The fishermen used to earn Rs. 100 to Rs. 200 daily, depending upon the size of their catch, but now they were all on the verge of starvation.

To seek an alternative source of income, some of them had ventured into the jungles to gather forest produce, but even this was not allowed by the STF. The people regretted that they were taken to task whenever they used torches to drive away foraging animals to their small land-holdings, as the STF thought that they were passing on signals to the outlaws in the forests.Based on the findings, the People's Watch would prepare a report and submit it to the State Human Rights Commission for further action.

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