The pre-monsoon and monsoon showers, accompanied by frequent weather alerts, forced fisherfolk to stay ashore. From the first week of May, they lost around 30 working days.
Published Jun 09, 2025 | 12:19 PM ⚊ Updated Jun 23, 2025 | 9:16 AM
Rameswaram fishermen arrested by Sri Lankan Navy for crossing IMBL(iStock)
Synopsis: The pre-monsoon tempests forced Kerala’s fisherfolk to bring their boats ashore, cutting their livelihoods adrift. With the impact of the MLC ELSA 3 shipwreck and the upcoming trawling ban, they now face economic hardship.
For Kerala’s fisherfolk, this year the sea turned hostile long before the monsoon clouds gathered. Freak pre-monsoon tempests forced boats ashore, cutting livelihoods adrift. Then came an early southwest monsoon, tightening nature’s grip on the coast.
However, the cruellest blow arrived on 24 May, the very day the monsoon officially hit — when container ship MSC ELSA 3 sank off the Kerala coast, sending 640 containers tumbling into the Arabian Sea.
A fishing ban was imposed within a 20-nautical-mile radius around the wreck, further shrinking the already dwindling waters for the community. And before they could fully recover, they now stare down the barrel of the 52-day annual trawling ban from Tuesday, 10 June.
For the 10.65 lakh-strong fisherfolk population across 335 coastal villages, what was once a seasonal struggle has become an unbroken stretch of adversity, anxiety, and economic hardship.
Containers carried by MSC ELSA 3 staying afloat in the sea.
“We haven’t faced this much hardship in recent memory,” Valerian Isaac, a traditional fisherman from Anchuthengu in Thiruvananthapuram, told South First. “It’s like an extended season of starvation for us,” he added.
The pre-monsoon and monsoon showers, accompanied by frequent weather alerts, had already forced fisherfolk to stay ashore. From the first week of May, they lost around 30 working days.
And just as they cautiously began venturing into the sea again, the aftermath of the MSC ELSA 3 shipwreck off the Kerala coast shattered what little hope remained.
“In the past five-six days, we’ve started going out to sea again. But the fear sparked by the shipwreck, that of contamination, is still very much alive in people’s minds. Fish consumption has nosedived,” added Valerian.
For the coastal communities, it’s not just about catching fish — it’s about market confidence, and that, they say, has evaporated.
“A single fishing trip needs a minimum of ₹10,000 to ₹12,000 — most of it on fuel. But now, we can’t even catch fish worth ₹5,000. And whatever little we do catch has no market,” he said grimly.
The fish markets wear a deserted look, confirmed Lima Sunil, a fisherwoman from Poovar, a fishing village in Thiruvananthapuram.
“The footfall has dwindled. Our men are sinking into debt traps. It’s only in the last few days that they dared to venture out again. And we’re racing against time because from 10 June, the trawling ban kicks in,” she told South First.
Lima was quick to clarify: “We are not against the trawling ban. It’s needed for the breeding season and to replenish fish stocks. We’re willing to endure that. But this year, pre-monsoon adversities, the monsoon shutdown, and the shipwreck back-to-back have crushed us.”
Both Valerian and Lima voiced deep frustration at what they called ‘namesake compensation’ from the government.
On 4 June, the Kerala government announced ₹1,000 per family to 78,498 fisherfolk families and 27,020 allied worker families across Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Alappuzha, and Ernakulam districts — from the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF).
Alongside, six kg of free rice per family was also promised as an interim relief for fishermen and fisheries-related workers in four coastal districts whose livelihoods have been severely impacted by the MSC ELSA 3 shipwreck.
Valerian scoffed at the move. “What logic is this? ₹1,000 and 6 kg of rice for a disaster like this? And why only for about one lakh families? Every single fisherfolk family in the state has been affected. The government, which should have stood by us, has insulted us,” he said.
Lima was even more emotional. “This is nothing but alms. A mockery. It feels like they are questioning our integrity. It’s heartbreaking,” she said.
The Fisheries Department has assured that free ration distribution for fishermen on trawling boats and allied workers who rely on them for a living will be ramped up during the trawling ban period, ensuring no one is left adrift without support.
MSC ELSA 3 shipwreck incident occurred on May 24 at 38 nautical miles southwest of Kochi.
What makes matters worse is the growing suspicion among fisherfolk that the shipwreck wasn’t an accident.
“It feels like a deliberate act. The government and the shipping company are hiding too much,” alleged Valerian.
“The claim about a ballast management failure causing the ship to sink makes no sense. And why was it sailing so close to the coast? What exactly was in those containers? The silence is suspicious,” he said.
Lima echoed a theory doing the rounds in the coastal belt.
“There’s talk that this was staged to scare us off our own seas — so that big developers can carry out their projects along the coast without resistance,” she alleged.
Meanwhile, the state government’s assurances that the fish caught from local waters are safe to consume and campaigns like “fish fests” to rebuild public trust have fallen flat.
“Those efforts haven’t made any difference. People are still afraid to buy fish,” Valerian said.
“The fish markets look abandoned these days,” Midhuna PS, a seafood lover, told South First. “There’s barely any fresh catch, and whatever little arrives is priced sky-high. Sellers themselves admit the hauls are poor. And then there’s the fear of contamination after the shipwreck — I haven’t dared to buy fresh fish since. I’ve switched to dry fish for now, but even that’s vanishing from the shelves,” she added.
For Kerala’s coastal communities, the present crisis is more than a passing struggle — it’s a storm against their very survival.
As Kerala’s fishing sector battles one of its toughest seasons in recent memory, the All Kerala Fishing Boat Operators’ Association has urged the state government to reduce the annual trawling ban period by 10 days.
“The sector is in deep crisis,” Peter Mathias, state president of the association, told South First. “At a time like this, a 52-day fishing ban will only deepen the misery. We are left with no choice but to request the government to bring it down to 42 days. It has been done before — and it must be considered now,” he added.
Citing multiple hardships, Mathias pointed out that several boats had suffered serious damage to their fishing gear in the aftermath of a recent shipwreck, with floating containers posing hazards at sea.
“The government and the Fisheries Department need to push the MSC shipping line and their insurers for prompt compensation to both fishermen and boat owners. The losses are mounting by the day — nets are getting torn, vessels are reporting damages, and livelihoods are at risk,” he said.
Even the little catch brought ashore is struggling to find fair prices, further compounding the woes of fishing communities.
“This is the time when, with the Bakrid celebration, the market should be bustling. But sales are dull, demand is weak, and prices are dismal,” lamented Mathias.
Preliminary estimates suggest losses running into crores. “We haven’t even formally assessed the total damage yet. The truth is — we don’t know what’s in store for us,” he admitted.
The association plans to formally approach the government in the coming days, pressing for both an urgent compensation mechanism and a reduced trawling ban duration.
Some containers that got beached along the coastlines of Kerala.
At the same time, Jackson Pollayil, state president of the Kerala Swathantra Matsya Thozhilali Federation, came out strongly against any proposal to reduce the annual trawling ban period. In fact, he argued for extending it to 90 days, citing the alarming depletion of marine resources along Kerala’s coast.
“The fish wealth in our seas is dwindling rapidly. It’s our responsibility to ensure an unhindered breeding season for marine species. We can no longer stick to the conventional 52-day ban — it’s time to think long-term,” Jackson stressed.
Adding to the growing concerns, Jackson raised a serious allegation linked to a recent shipwreck off the coast.
Alleging that the state government is protecting corporate interests, Jackson questioned why no criminal case has been filed against the shipping company, MSC, involved in the shipwreck incident.
“Why hasn’t a case been registered against the shipping company yet? The Fort Kochi Police could easily file one. Whose interests is the government safeguarding here?” Jackson asked, sharply criticising the government’s silence on the matter.
Meanwhile, reports have surfaced that the state government, after consultations with the Union Ministry of Shipping, has decided not to file a criminal case against MSC — one of the world’s largest shipping firms and a key operator at the Vizhinjam International Seaport. Instead, the government has directed to pursue an insurance claim to recover the losses caused by the shipwreck.
Top-level discussions involving the chief minister and the Director General of Shipping reportedly took place on 29 May, where the state was advised against escalating the issue legally.
Sources said that while the state initially considered legal action, it backed off, wary of jeopardising its strategic partnership with MSC — whose vessels form a significant chunk of expected traffic at Vizhinjam port. The government has now prioritised gathering comprehensive evidence of damages, which will strengthen its position for the insurance settlement.
According to Jackson, several fishing boats have reportedly netted cashew nuts and plastic debris — believed to have come from one of the containers aboard the sunken ship.
“As of now, officials seem confident that the containers lying at the seabed will remain intact. But given the high pressure in deep waters, we cannot rule out the risk of leakage or contamination of hazardous cargoes. The authorities must act without delay to recover the ship and its cargo,” Jackson warned.
He also questioned the plan to merely mark the site with a buoy, arguing that strong undercurrents could easily displace the wreckage.
“This incident could have severely impacted the Quilon Bank — or Kollam Paaru — one of the richest and most productive fishing grounds along the southwest coast. The government’s immediate priority should be salvaging the containers and restoring confidence among consumers about the safety of the seafood they buy,” he added.
Kerala’s fisherfolk aren’t just fighting nature’s fury; they’re battling a creeping fear that their way of life is slipping away. For now, nets are cast with more hope than certainty, and every dawn at the shore feels less like a fresh beginning and more like a battle for survival.
(Edited by Muhammed Fazil.)
