433 Gujarat fishermen in Pakistani jails, says govt

As many as 433 fishermen from Gujarat are languishing in Pakistani jails, the state government said in the assembly on Thursday.

The information was provided by fisheries minister RC Faldu in a written reply in the House in response to a question by Congress MLA from Jamjodhpur, Chirag Kalaria. The minister's reply also said that 687 fishermen were released from jails in the last two years.

"510 fishermen were released from jails in 2017, and 177 in 2018," it said.

Asked about the steps taken by the state to secure the release of the fishermen, the minister said that the state government provided confirmation regarding their nationality to the union home ministry.

In another written reply, the minister said that the government paid Rs 150 as daily livelihood allowance to families of fishermen languishing in Pakistani jails. The allowance was increased to Rs 300 by the state government while announcing the vote on account on Tuesday.

"Families of 344 fishermen were paid assistance of Rs 1.88 crore in 2017, and families of 307 fishermen were paid Rs 1.71 crore in 2018," the minister added.

In another reply, the minister revealed that the state had not received any fund from the Centre for diesel used by fishermen in their boats or for fishermen development, in the last two years.