Wednesday, July 29, 2015
Wednesday, January 1, 2014
Kollam Fishermen Safe Thanks To A Community Radio
A community radio has taken the initiative in Kollam - arguably a first in India - to disseminate information that can save lives. Why not others asks Dinesh Kumar.
There are only a few professions in thich the workers put their life at risk. Fishermen do just that when they go out to the sea, sometimes without knowing what is going to happen out there. After all their lives are dependent on the weather.
Radio Benziger, a Kollam-based community radio station, has taken the initiative to make the local fishermen's lives safer. It broadcasts marine weather forecast thrice a day which is very useful for these fisher folks.
Indian National Centre For Ocean Information Sciences (INCOIS) disseminates ‘ocean state forecasting’ to Radio Benziger. On the basis of the feedback and their own validation INCOIS claims that they are more than 80% accurate which, according to them, is a very impressive figure. They provide information on wind direction, wind speed, wave height, currents and other parameters with a three hourly interval. It can also be customised for a daily parameter also.
Praphul George, Radio Benziger co-ordinator, says, “We have excellent feedback from fisher folks. Though the traditional fishermen know a lot about the weather this is still very useful, especially for the new generation who are not experts when in comes to traditional knowledge. It takes only around 2.5 to 3 minutes to broadcast it once.” He adds, “It gives us satisfaction to know that our service can save lives.”
Dr. R Hari Kumar, scientist in charge of ocean state forecasting in INCOIS, says, “We collaborate with many NGOs and other agencies to disseminate our information. We can even forecast five days ahead. Also, the information is more useful if it can be localised as much as possible.”
The authorities of Radio Benziger say that they are doing a service. They do not care whether there is profit or not. If a community radio service can make this much of a difference then why not collaborate the effect and spread it throughout Kerala or India?
Also, folks at Radio Benziger says that they have the necessary Government infrastructure to provide any radio station with the data. The question is why these facilities are not being used.
Kerala has a coastline of around 590 kilometers. The population of fisherfolk in Kerala is estimated at about 10.85 lakhs (about a million people). It means there are a lot of people out there who need this facility. It is just a matter of initiative, either by the Government or by other humanitarian agencies to provide information that can be a life saver!
About Radio Benziger:
Radio Benziger is a community radio engaged in the effort to empower people especially those belonging to the marginalized segments in the city of Kollam in order to continuously develop the quality of their life in all its aspects. It strives to achieve this by providing a platform where the members of the community come together to interact and share information, knowledge and skills regarding issues that concern them and through a participatory process of decision making for continuous development.
http://www.yentha.com/news/view/4/kollam-fishermen-safe-thanks-to-a-community-radio-
There are only a few professions in thich the workers put their life at risk. Fishermen do just that when they go out to the sea, sometimes without knowing what is going to happen out there. After all their lives are dependent on the weather.
Radio Benziger, a Kollam-based community radio station, has taken the initiative to make the local fishermen's lives safer. It broadcasts marine weather forecast thrice a day which is very useful for these fisher folks.
Indian National Centre For Ocean Information Sciences (INCOIS) disseminates ‘ocean state forecasting’ to Radio Benziger. On the basis of the feedback and their own validation INCOIS claims that they are more than 80% accurate which, according to them, is a very impressive figure. They provide information on wind direction, wind speed, wave height, currents and other parameters with a three hourly interval. It can also be customised for a daily parameter also.
Praphul George, Radio Benziger co-ordinator, says, “We have excellent feedback from fisher folks. Though the traditional fishermen know a lot about the weather this is still very useful, especially for the new generation who are not experts when in comes to traditional knowledge. It takes only around 2.5 to 3 minutes to broadcast it once.” He adds, “It gives us satisfaction to know that our service can save lives.”
Dr. R Hari Kumar, scientist in charge of ocean state forecasting in INCOIS, says, “We collaborate with many NGOs and other agencies to disseminate our information. We can even forecast five days ahead. Also, the information is more useful if it can be localised as much as possible.”
The authorities of Radio Benziger say that they are doing a service. They do not care whether there is profit or not. If a community radio service can make this much of a difference then why not collaborate the effect and spread it throughout Kerala or India?
Also, folks at Radio Benziger says that they have the necessary Government infrastructure to provide any radio station with the data. The question is why these facilities are not being used.
Kerala has a coastline of around 590 kilometers. The population of fisherfolk in Kerala is estimated at about 10.85 lakhs (about a million people). It means there are a lot of people out there who need this facility. It is just a matter of initiative, either by the Government or by other humanitarian agencies to provide information that can be a life saver!
About Radio Benziger:
Radio Benziger is a community radio engaged in the effort to empower people especially those belonging to the marginalized segments in the city of Kollam in order to continuously develop the quality of their life in all its aspects. It strives to achieve this by providing a platform where the members of the community come together to interact and share information, knowledge and skills regarding issues that concern them and through a participatory process of decision making for continuous development.
http://www.yentha.com/news/view/4/kollam-fishermen-safe-thanks-to-a-community-radio-
Sunday, July 29, 2012
10 Uses of the GPS for Fishermen
This was written for broadcast through Community Radio Benziger, Kollam, Kerala, as part of the community service project of Rotary Club of Tangasseri, Quilon. This is the first of a series of programs targeted at fishermen and fishing communities around Kollam by the Rotary club.
10 Uses of the GPS for fishermen
1. To know how far you are from home and find the shortest way back home
2. To save fuel by taking the shortest distances to destinations - straight line routes
3. To return to a known fishing ground
4. To mark dangers at sea like submerged rocks, shallow patches, wrecks etc
5. To mark the location of an accident like collision with a ship, man overboard, drowning or capsize
6. To plot routes to regularly visited reefs and fishing grounds (particularly for hook and line fishermen)
7. To provide information about location at sea to search and rescue teams in times of emergencies
8. To find set and drift by observing the deviations from plotted route
9. To know estimated time of arrival at known locations
10. To know the actual speed of the boat
10 Precautions Before Going out to Sea in the Monsoon
This was written for broadcast through Community Radio Benziger, Kollam, Kerala, as part of the community service project of Rotary Club of Tangasseri, Quilon. This is the first of a series of programs targeted at fishermen and fishing communities around Kollam by the Rotary club.
10 Precautions Before Going out to Sea in the Monsoon
1. Ensure engines are serviced and prescribed oils are in use.
2. Ensure the hull of the boat is in good condition - check for cracks and leaks and get them fixed before the monsoon.
3. Listen to weather broadcasts on radio regularly..
4. Always fish in sight of another boat. DO NOT fish in isolation.
5. Carry a good flashlight and ensure one all-round light is always burning during periods of darkness.
6. Ensure one person remains awake during night time. While fishing at night, the men can take turns in keeping awake ensuring everyone gets some sleep and rest.
7. Ensure all loose equipment in the boat is secured and the anchor and rope is carried at all times.
8. Be alert for abnormal, unexpected changes in the weather specially during the onset and the end of the monsoon.
9. Ensure there's sufficient fuel and essential spares and tools for the engine.
10. Do not consume alcohol while on a fishing trip.
Sunday, July 15, 2012
India's First Marine Weather Forecast on Radio
From The Hindu
KOLLAM, July 9, 2012
Labour Minister Shibu Baby John, on Sunday, inaugurated a programme which provides daily marine weather forecasts for seagoing fishermen in Kollam district. The forecast will be broadcast thrice a day through Radio Benziger, a Kollam-based community radio station. In his address, Mr. John said he would strive to extend this ‘unique initiative’ across the State. Kollam Bishop Stanley Roman delivered the benedictory address and Mayor Prasanna Earnest spoke.
The broadcast, the first of its kind in the country, is expected to benefit at least 20,000 fishermen of the district and several migrant fishermen operating from the harbours of Tangasseri, Shakthikulangara and Neendakara in addition to several minor fish landing sites along the Kollam coast.
John Thekkayyam, the architect of the programme, said that in spite of having a 7,500-kilometre coastline and a marine fisher folk population of 3.57 million spread across more than 3,000 marine fishing villages in the country, there was no regular marine weather broadcast for fishermen.
He said that all weather forecasts were directed at farmers and the general public. This, despite the fact that marine fishermen worked in an environment where the weather had the potential to turn hostile any moment. Such weather broadcasts were common in developed countries, he added
Mr. Thekkayyam, a former merchant navy navigation officer, said marine weather data received from the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services would be translated into simple Malayalam for being broadcast through Radio Benziger.
The programme is conceived and promoted by the Rotary Club of Tangasseri. The broadcasts, which will forecast swell, wind, and tides, will be in the morning, noon and at night for the next 24 hours.
But if wind with a speed of more than 38 km an hour is forecast, it will be broadcast frequently.
Safety tips
Club president Shaji Vishwanath and secretary Lester Fernandez said that in addition to the weather forecast, the club would also provide sea safety tips for fishermen through Radio Benziger. These broadcasts will be available to fishermen residing along the Kollam coast from Thanni in the south to Azheekkal in the north and for more than 30 km into the sea.
Friday, September 30, 2011
Koodankulam Agitation and the Increasing Onus on Coastal Communities
This article was first published in the TRINet blog, part of the TRINet October 2011 Newsletter.
 |
| Photo: The Hindu |
The anti-nuclear movement against the Koodankulam project began less than a month after India and the Soviet Union signed the deal on 20 November 1988. In 1989, during a demonstration in Kanyakumari by over a thousand people, organised by the National Fishworkers Union, the police opened fire and disabled the public address system. This angered the demonstrators further and many more meetings and protest marches were organised in the aftermath but it was the collapse of the Soviet Union that literally sunk the project into hibernation.
In 1998, the project was revived and in 2001, Dr.SP Udayakumar from Nagercoil founded a broad umbrella organization, People’s Movement Against Nuclear Energy (PMANE) with a focus on public education. They organised meetings, seminars and street gatherings among students, concerned citizens, associations of women, farmers, students, teachers, fishermen and religious leaders. Most of the people in the three southern districts of Kanyakumari, Tirunelveli and Thoothukudi were sensitized of the dangers posed by the Koodankulam project.
When the first two phases of the project (Koodankulam 1 & 2) were finalised there were no mandatory provisions for an environment impact assessment and neither any windows for hearing people’s opinions for or against the project. The earliest official opportunity for local communities came in October 2006 and the administration was overwhelmed by hundreds of people who registered forcing it to abort the hearing.
Since then, the administration has relentlessly tried to suppress the agitating crowds failing completely to understand their concerns. Activists were targeted – they began receiving phone calls from the police and the Intelligence Bureau. Some were even taken into custody on false charges.
The unwillingness of the administration to heed to the concerns of local communities was even seen in the most recent of these ‘hearings’. The EIA document circulated was in English, incomprehensible to local communities, and was found to be flawed in many places.
This year, when plans to commission the project were announced, the People’s Movement Against Nuclear Energy (PMAE) spearheaded an agitation involving 127 villagers including 20 women, 4 physically challenged and 7 members of the Catholic clergy who went on an indefinite fast from 11 September 2011.
At first, the administration tried to suppress the agitation but the overwhelming support of local communities, their elected representatives and the long shadow of the Anna Hazare campaign made them reconsider their strategy. The PM, Manmohan Singh sent an emissary, V Narayanasamy, but the agitating members of the community refused to meet him. The CM of Tamil Nadu, J Jayalalita defused the situation by persuading the PMANE to suspend the agitation for three months to give the Centre time to address the people’s concerns. The settlement terms gave the authorities time to consider the issues, and the protesters were free to resume the agitation if their expectations were not fulfilled.
The scientific community, meanwhile, has been batting for the project saying the plant had features such as better seismic and tsunami resistance and could withstand a Fukushima-like accident and others.
Talking to the press, Srinivasan, also a former Director, Projects, Nuclear Power Corporation of India (NPCIL), said, world over, countries such as China and Iran besides India India
BRP Bhaskar, a political analyst of reckoning, writing in the Gulf Today, says, at current costs, generation of additional 15,000MW of nuclear power will involve an investment of no less than Rs.3,000 billion. It makes no sense to make an investment of that order on plants that are to be abandoned after three decades. It will be prudent to divert the money for development of alternative energy sources straightaway.
It has become increasingly clear that our elected representatives, the bureaucracy and scientific community have stopped listening to the very communities they are accountable to. Long term vision and impact on humans is on the back burner and the focus has now narrowed to their terms in office.
“I am increasingly getting concerned about the "short term ownership/ caretaker" mentality of the so-called elected representatives of the people and the attitude of bureaucrats who pander to those in power, the govt staff and academia who are only bothered about anything adversely affecting their lifelong pensions,” says Annie George, CEO, Bedroc, an NGO based in Nagapattinam. “So who is the final owner? Who holds the commitment to long term issues and long term development,” she asks.
The rising stock market and a relatively stable economy is pushing the government to compromise on the environment. The environment and local communities have never before been so much threatened by wanton development. The POSCO project where a well established agrarian economy is being destroyed to accommodate a steel plant, is another example of such violations spearheaded by the government. Defending humanity seems to be the last thing on their minds. The onus of protecting the environment now seems to be upon the people more than the administrators, and this is indeed a matter of grave concern that needs to be addressed urgently.
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Oceans at Risk, say Scientists but Indian Fisheries Seem to Thrive
This article was first published in the TRINet Newsletter July 2011.
The future of marine life in the oceans is bleak and marine degradation is happening at an unprecedented rate, if we believe a report released by the International Program on the State of the Ocean in concert with the International Union for Conservation of Nature, in April this year, at a workshop held at the University of Oxford, London.
We now face losing marine species and entire marine ecosystems, such as coral reefs, within a single generation, the report said. Corals were particularly at risk from the bleaching effect caused by rising sea temperatures and from acidification, which deprive the tiny organisms of the calcium carbonate they need to build their homes.
The key points underlying this conclusion, according to this report, are:
1. Human actions have resulted in warming and acidification of the oceans and are now causing increased hypoxia.
2. The magnitude of the cumulative impacts on the ocean is greater than previously understood. Interactions between different impacts can be negatively synergistic (negative impact greater than sum of individual stressors) or they can be antagonistic (lowering the effects of individual impacts).
3. Timelines for action are shrinking.
The longer the delay in reducing emissions the higher the annual reduction rate will have to be and the greater the financial cost. Delays will mean increased environmental damage with greater socioeconomic impacts, costs of mitigation and adaptation measures.
4. Ecosystem collapse is occurring as a result of both current and emerging stressors.
Stressors include chemical pollutants, agriculture run-off, sediment loads and over-extraction of many components of food webs which singly and together severely impair the functioning of ecosystems.
5. The threat of extinction to marine species is rapidly increasing.
The main causes of extinctions of marine species to date are overexploitation and habitat loss. However climate change is an increasing threat to species, as evidenced by the recent IUCN Red List Assessment of reef‐forming corals. Some other species ranges have already extended or shifted pole-wards and into deeper cooler waters; this may not be possible for some species to achieve, potentially leading to reduced habitats and more extinctions.
In India too, the impact of climate change on fish species has been perceived with extension of range of some species. Analyzing data on sea surface temperature (SST) and other parameters from a variety of global sources, scientists found warming of the sea surface along the entire Indian coast. The SST increased by 0.2 deg C along the northwest, southwest and northeast coasts and by 0.3 deg C along the southeast coast during the 45-year period from 1960 to 2005.
The oil sardine and the Indian mackerel accounted for 21 percent of the marine fish catch in 2006. These small pelagics, especially the oil sardine, have been known for restricted distribution – between 8 and 14 deg N latitude and 75 and 77 deg East longitude (Malabar upwelling zone, along the southwest coast of India) where the annual average SST ranges from 27 to 29 deg C. Until 1985, almost the entire catch was from the Malabar upwelling zone; there was little or no catch from latitudes north of 14 deg N. During the last two decades, however, catches from latitude 14 - 20 deg N are increasing. In 2006, catches in this area accounted for about 15 percent of the all-India oil sardine catch.
The higher the SST, the better the oil sardine catch. The surface waters of the Indian seas are warming by 0.04 deg C per decade. Since the waters in latitudes north of 14 deg N are warming, the oil sardine and Indian mackerel are moving to northern latitudes. It is seen that catches from the Malabar upwelling zone have not gone down. So, in effect, sardines are extending northward, not shifting northward. The Indian mackerel is also found to be extending northward in a similar way.
According to CMFRI, the catch of oil sardines along the coast of Tamil Nadu has gone up dramatically. The presence of the species in new areas is a bonus for coastal fishing communities. Besides exploring northern waters, the Indian mackerel has also been descending deeper as well. The fish normally occupies surface and subsurface waters. During 1985-89, only 2 percent of the mackerel catch was from bottom trawlers, the remainder was caught by pelagic gear such as drift gillnet. During 2003-2007, however, an estimated 15 percent of the mackerel has been caught by bottom trawlers along the Indian coast. It appears that with the warming of sub-surface waters, the mackerel has been extending deeper and downward as well.
Communities of humans living along the coasts of developing and poor countries, and their dependence on marine resources don’t figure anywhere in this workshop largely dominated by concerns for conserving ecosystems and marine life. There are large swathes of unregulated fisheries thriving along the coasts of our oceans. Their sustainable management is as urgent as the concerns for bleaching corals and mass extinctions. Let us hope that strategies for adaptation to climate change will include enhancements to livelihoods and economic outputs as well as the safety of ecosystems, and holistically move towards conserving marine life, the oceans and enhancing livelihoods of coastal communities.
(Sources: Summary of the conclusions and recommendations of the international Earth system expert workshop on ocean stresses and impacts, IPSO IUCN WCPA; Bay of Bengal News: March - June 2008)
The future of marine life in the oceans is bleak and marine degradation is happening at an unprecedented rate, if we believe a report released by the International Program on the State of the Ocean in concert with the International Union for Conservation of Nature, in April this year, at a workshop held at the University of Oxford, London.
We now face losing marine species and entire marine ecosystems, such as coral reefs, within a single generation, the report said. Corals were particularly at risk from the bleaching effect caused by rising sea temperatures and from acidification, which deprive the tiny organisms of the calcium carbonate they need to build their homes.
The key points underlying this conclusion, according to this report, are:
1. Human actions have resulted in warming and acidification of the oceans and are now causing increased hypoxia.
2. The magnitude of the cumulative impacts on the ocean is greater than previously understood. Interactions between different impacts can be negatively synergistic (negative impact greater than sum of individual stressors) or they can be antagonistic (lowering the effects of individual impacts).
3. Timelines for action are shrinking.
The longer the delay in reducing emissions the higher the annual reduction rate will have to be and the greater the financial cost. Delays will mean increased environmental damage with greater socioeconomic impacts, costs of mitigation and adaptation measures.
4. Ecosystem collapse is occurring as a result of both current and emerging stressors.
Stressors include chemical pollutants, agriculture run-off, sediment loads and over-extraction of many components of food webs which singly and together severely impair the functioning of ecosystems.
5. The threat of extinction to marine species is rapidly increasing.
The main causes of extinctions of marine species to date are overexploitation and habitat loss. However climate change is an increasing threat to species, as evidenced by the recent IUCN Red List Assessment of reef‐forming corals. Some other species ranges have already extended or shifted pole-wards and into deeper cooler waters; this may not be possible for some species to achieve, potentially leading to reduced habitats and more extinctions.
In India too, the impact of climate change on fish species has been perceived with extension of range of some species. Analyzing data on sea surface temperature (SST) and other parameters from a variety of global sources, scientists found warming of the sea surface along the entire Indian coast. The SST increased by 0.2 deg C along the northwest, southwest and northeast coasts and by 0.3 deg C along the southeast coast during the 45-year period from 1960 to 2005.
The oil sardine and the Indian mackerel accounted for 21 percent of the marine fish catch in 2006. These small pelagics, especially the oil sardine, have been known for restricted distribution – between 8 and 14 deg N latitude and 75 and 77 deg East longitude (Malabar upwelling zone, along the southwest coast of India) where the annual average SST ranges from 27 to 29 deg C. Until 1985, almost the entire catch was from the Malabar upwelling zone; there was little or no catch from latitudes north of 14 deg N. During the last two decades, however, catches from latitude 14 - 20 deg N are increasing. In 2006, catches in this area accounted for about 15 percent of the all-India oil sardine catch.
The higher the SST, the better the oil sardine catch. The surface waters of the Indian seas are warming by 0.04 deg C per decade. Since the waters in latitudes north of 14 deg N are warming, the oil sardine and Indian mackerel are moving to northern latitudes. It is seen that catches from the Malabar upwelling zone have not gone down. So, in effect, sardines are extending northward, not shifting northward. The Indian mackerel is also found to be extending northward in a similar way.
According to CMFRI, the catch of oil sardines along the coast of Tamil Nadu has gone up dramatically. The presence of the species in new areas is a bonus for coastal fishing communities. Besides exploring northern waters, the Indian mackerel has also been descending deeper as well. The fish normally occupies surface and subsurface waters. During 1985-89, only 2 percent of the mackerel catch was from bottom trawlers, the remainder was caught by pelagic gear such as drift gillnet. During 2003-2007, however, an estimated 15 percent of the mackerel has been caught by bottom trawlers along the Indian coast. It appears that with the warming of sub-surface waters, the mackerel has been extending deeper and downward as well.
Communities of humans living along the coasts of developing and poor countries, and their dependence on marine resources don’t figure anywhere in this workshop largely dominated by concerns for conserving ecosystems and marine life. There are large swathes of unregulated fisheries thriving along the coasts of our oceans. Their sustainable management is as urgent as the concerns for bleaching corals and mass extinctions. Let us hope that strategies for adaptation to climate change will include enhancements to livelihoods and economic outputs as well as the safety of ecosystems, and holistically move towards conserving marine life, the oceans and enhancing livelihoods of coastal communities.
(Sources: Summary of the conclusions and recommendations of the international Earth system expert workshop on ocean stresses and impacts, IPSO IUCN WCPA; Bay of Bengal News: March - June 2008)
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