Fishermen in Kerala Village Face Heavy Losses After MSC Elsa Shipwreck, Says Study

The MSC Elsa shipwreck off Kerala’s coast is costing each fishing family in a village about ₹25,000 to 30,000 a month, according to a pilot study by an NGO into the incident that occurred in May this year.

The study by Greenpeace India also found that drifting containers and plastic nurdles from the wreck have damaged fishermen's nets, adding to their losses.

Activists from the NGO and representatives of the fishermen's association in Kerala released the report on Tuesday, after a survey in Karumkulam Panchayat, during a protest against the delay in compensation from the shipping company.

The Liberian-flagged container ship MSC Elsa 3 sank 14.6 nautical miles southwest of the Kochi coast on May 24.

Greenpeace activists conducted the pilot survey at Karumkulam Panchayat in Pulluvila, Thiruvananthapuram, to assess the average damage caused by the shipwreck in a fishing village. They estimated that the total loss in a single coastal village could be around Rs 54 lakh.

"You can imagine the overall loss across the coastal villages in Kerala following this shipwreck. The government has demanded Rs 9,531 crore in compensation from the shipping company, but in reality the total loss could be double that amount," said Jackson Pollayil, state president of the Fishermen’s Federation of Kerala, speaking to PTI Videos.

He added that the company had only agreed to pay ₹132 crore as compensation for what he described as a "major disaster".

"We do not know how they calculated this figure. They have a moral responsibility to tell us what data they used to arrive at this conclusion,” Jackson said, pointing out that one coastal panchayat alone had suffered losses of ₹54 lakh.

"This is not just about one village. It is an assessment of all coastal villages in Kerala badly affected by the shipwreck. We should not allow the MSC shipping company to exploit loopholes in the case," Amrurha S N, a climate campaigner with Greenpeace, told PTI Videos.

Greenpeace activists surveyed adults and children in Karumkulam Panchayat and found that the lives of fishermen --especially fisherwomen -- have deteriorated considerably since the disaster.

They are now being forced to look for alternative work, as fishing is no longer viable. Many young people said that since the Covid-19 pandemic, each fishing trip has cost them more in fuel, leaving them struggling to make ends meet.

"I cannot operate my boat because the pollution from plastic nurdles and drifting containers has damaged my nets. I am now working as a crew member on another fishing boat," said Densen, a 43-year-old fisherman.

The fishermen's associations said they would have no choice but to continue protesting if the government delayed compensation further.

"We hope the government will soon find a solution to our problems. If that does not happen, we have no option but to continue our protests," Jackson Pollayil said.

During their protest in front of the Secretariat, fishermen displayed their damaged nets and demanded swift action from the government to address the impact of the shipwreck.