festival in Katchatheevu is denied to Tamil Nadu fishermen, causing the festival to be halted on several occasions. For a solution, India must reclaim Katchatheevu from Sri Lanka.

 festival in Katchatheevu is denied to Tamil Nadu fishermen, causing the festival to be halted on several occasions. For a solution, India must reclaim Katchatheevu from Sri Lanka.

Katchatheevu, with its lush greenery, was called the Green Island. It earned the name ‘Katchatheevu’ due to the abundance of turtles (katcham) on the island. Innocent fishermen who venture into the deep sea for fishing are sometimes harshly punished without mercy if they unknowingly cross the Indian border. Despite the understanding that these fishermen would not cause harm even if they cross the border, they are deliberately subjected to cruelty by the Sri Lankan government. The reason for this situation is that the age-old right to fish from Katchatheevu has been reduced to merely drying fishing nets, due to the agreement made by the central government with Sri Lanka. Under this agreement, fishermen cannot even go to dry their nets today. Due to the Sri Lankan Navy’s refusal to adhere to the agreement, the suffering faced by Tamil Nadu fishermen is immeasurable. Fishermen who go fishing near Katchatheevu fall victim to gunfire or are taken as prisoners to Sri Lanka. This issue has been discussed multiple times in the Indian Parliament, Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly, and on various political party platforms, with arguments made to reclaim Katchatheevu for India. On 3.10.1991, during the AIADMK regime, the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly unanimously passed a resolution to reclaim Katchatheevu and sent it to the central government. The resolution is as follows: “From time immemorial, fishermen from the coastal districts of Thanjavur, Pudukkottai, Ramanathapuram, and Tirunelveli have been fishing in the sea between Sri Lanka and India, particularly near Katchatheevu, to earn their daily livelihood, which is a historical truth. The agreements between India and Sri Lanka in 1974 and 1976 were based on the principle that both countries could continue to enjoy the rights they had in the maritime boundaries. Based on this, fishermen from Tamil Nadu continued to fish in the sea near Katchatheevu to sustain their livelihood.” However, contrary to the rights granted under these agreements, the Sri Lankan Navy attacks, harasses, cuts fishing nets, seizes motorboats, and sinks boats, subjecting Tamil Nadu fishermen to various hardships whenever they attempt to fish in the sea as per their custom. Tamil Nadu has periodically brought such undesirable incidents to the attention of the central government. Recently, the Sri Lankan Navy has intensified attacks on Tamil Nadu fishermen. At the peak of these attacks, they have fired upon fishermen, injuring them, solely because they were fishing near Katchatheevu. From 1983 to August 1991, the Sri Lankan Navy carried out 236 attacks on Tamil Nadu fishermen. A total of 303 boats were attacked, 486 fishermen were affected, 51 boats were destroyed, 135 fishermen were injured in these attacks, over 50 fishermen lost their lives, and 57 fishermen were injured by gunfire. The Sri Lankan Navy seized 65 motorboats and arrested 205 fishermen. Notably, the number of such incidents has increased this year. The Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly strongly condemns the Sri Lankan Navy’s unprovoked attacks, gunfire, and continuous infliction of various hardships on Tamil Nadu fishermen and wishes to convey this condemnation to the Sri Lankan government through the central government. The central government must urge the Sri Lankan government to provide compensation to the families of Indian fishermen killed by the Sri Lankan Navy and create a conducive environment for Tamil Nadu fishermen to lead peaceful lives, as requested by the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly. Katchatheevu genuinely belonged to the Sethupathi kings of Ramanathapuram. The island had various medicinal herbs, including umiri and chaya ver (green leaves). King Sethupathi had leased it for five years to traders Janab Mohammed Khader