The Ramanathapuram Fishermen Trade Union (RFTU) on Sunday urged the State and Central governments to lift ban on sea cucumber fishing, which is prohibited under the Wildlife Protection Act 1972.

A resolution to this effect was adopted at the conference held here on the occasion of World Fishermen Day. It was attended by Thomas Kocheri, convener, National Fishermen Federation, Xavier Pinto, Executive Committee member, Jesuratnam, S. Arulanandam, N. Rajendra Prasad, S. Karuppasamy, R. Meena and others took part.

The resolution said it was not correct on the part of the government to ban sea cucumber fishing as the Gulf of Mannar was abundant with sea cucumber. As many as two lakh fishermen of Ramanathapuram and Tuticorin had been engaged in the fishing. They had been facing problem including criminal action whenever they happened to net sea cucumber. The ban should be imposed only for the species, which were very rare to sight.

Another resolution said the move of the State and Central governments to float buoys along the 21 islands of Ramanathapuram and Tuticorin districts was against the fishermen interest. It would pose livelihood problems to the fishermen of the region. Hence it was pertinent to abandon the proposed move. The State should take up the matter to the Central government and impress upon the need for ensuring fishermen rights in the region.

Pointing out a number of incidents of attack against the fishermen of Tamil Nadu by the Sri Lankan Navy, the RFTU through another resolution urged the State and Central governments to take steps to get back the Kachchatheevu from Sri Lanka. It would help solve problems of fishermen, particularly in Rameswaram and Nagapattinam.

It also said that steps should be taken to ensure that the Gulf of Mannar Biosphere Reserve Trust Scheme benefits only fishermen.