Are foreign companies at fault?

Akhil Maharashtra Machhimar Kriti Samiti (AMMKS) — an umbrella organisation for fishermen across the state — are planning to file a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) regarding the “frequent” illegal sneaking of foreign ships into Mumbai shores.

The union members suspect it to be a conspiracy by foreign ship owners who, they claim, abandon old vessels in Indian territories to claim insurance by pretending they have sunk or got damaged.

“The (foreign) vessel owners know that the fishermen here don’t venture into the sea during the rains, which is what they take advantage of,” said Damodar Tandel, president, AAMKS. The fishermen want a judicial inquiry.

The fishing community also wants the police to investigate the presence of six unidentified persons trying to flee in a rubber boat recently. DNA had first published a report about two fishermen from Versova who saw six men near MT Pavit.