Gujarat govt gender insensitive? Cyclone package for fisherfolk 'ignores' poor women

By Jag Jivan*
A memorandum submitted to the Gujarat government by various fisherfolk associations of the Saurashtra region of Gujarat under the leadership of Ahmedabad NGO Centre for Social Justice's senior activist Arvind Khuman, who is based in Amreli, has suggested that the relief package offered to the fishermen affected by the Tauktae cyclone is not only inadequate, it is also gender insensitive.
Of more than one lakh fisherfolk affected in Amreli and Gir Somnath districts, nearly 40 per cent are women, who work along the coast just as the males go out to fish in the sea. All of them belong to poor families, and the cyclone has robbed these women of their livelihood, yet the government package to the tune of Rs 105 crore ignores them, said the memorandum.
In fact, siad the memorandum, which demands a relief of Rs 5,000 per month for women for the next six months, those ignored include the fisherfolk working exclusively on land, involved in drying up the fish catch. Since the landing points of the cyclone at Shialbet island, Piplikantha, Jafrabad, Chanch port, Dhara port, Syed Rajpara, Nawa Bandar, Simar, Mahuva port and Katpar port were badly affected, those working on this job, including women and migrant workers, have been "ignored."
"The lands have been eroded so much that large pits have been created which makes these lands not suitable for drying fish. Hence, a special plan should be prepared so that these lands can be restored and fishermen can do their business", the memorandum, submitted to the fisheries commissioner, Gujarat government, said. The devastating cyclone hit Saurashtra coast in May third week this year.
Also ignored are the unregistered fisherfolk who operate boats on rent; those who have not used their boats for fishing during the last 2-3 years but their boats have been damaged; the fisherfolk that migrated to ports like Jafrabad and Saud Rajpara for employment and built huts along the coast which stand destroyed; and so on.
Other demands in the package include Rs 5,000 compensation instead of Rs 2,000 per month to all affected khalasi fisherfolk for the next six months; subsidised loan of Rs 35-40 lakh instead of assistance to the tune of Rs 2-5 lakh for rebuilding or replacing their destroyed boats; compensation to the tune of Rs 5 lakh for loss of boat equipment instead of Rs 35,000 to 75,000; and Rs 15 lakh to the families of the fisherman who died during the cyclone instead of 6 lakh assistance.
Said the memorandum, the government should know the extent of damage -- each boat has four nets worth Rs 1 lakh each; GPS and other wireless devices worth Rs 50,000; solar panel, battery, inverter, power supply etc. worth Rs 50,000; gas bottles, ration goods, utensils etc. worth Rs 15,000; and 300 to 800 litres of diesel worth Rs 30,000 to 80,000. Also, it added, many boat owners have lost their boat licences and other documents due to the cyclone, hence they are facing difficulty in being compensated.
Signatories to the memorandum include Fishermen Interest Protection Union, Shiyalbet; Sant Shelaiya Mahila Mandal, Shiyalbet; Ramdev Education Trust, Shiyalbet; Shiyalbet Swayam Sevak Sangh; Sagar Khedu Trust, Jafrabad; Jal Kanya Matsya Udyog Seva Sahakari Mandali Rajpara Bandar, Una; Daria Dil Machhimar Hak Rakshak Sangh Syed Rajpara, Una; Resistance Committee, Una; Khodiyar Mandal, Dharabandar; and fisherfolk of the Rajula region.

---

*Freelance writer

Comments

Was Netaji forced to alter face, die in obscurity in USSR in 1975? Was he so meek?

By Rajiv Shah This should sound almost hilarious. Not only did Subhas Chandra Bose not die in a plane crash in Taipei, nor was he the mysterious Gumnami Baba who reportedly passed away on 16 September 1985 in Ayodhya, but we are now told that he actually died in 1975—date unknown—“in oblivion” somewhere in the former Soviet Union. Which city? Moscow? No one seems to know.

Swami Vivekananda's views on caste and sexuality were 'painfully' regressive

By Bhaskar Sur* Swami Vivekananda now belongs more to the modern Hindu mythology than reality. It makes a daunting job to discover the real human being who knew unemployment, humiliation of losing a teaching job for 'incompetence', longed in vain for the bliss of a happy conjugal life only to suffer the consequent frustration.

Love letters in a lifelong war: Babusha Kohli’s resistance in verse

By Ravi Ranjan* “War does not determine who is right—only who is left.” Bertrand Russell’s words echo hauntingly in our times, and few contemporary Hindi poets embody this truth as profoundly as Babusha Kohli. Emerging from Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, Kohli has carved a unique space in literature by weaving together tenderness, protest, and philosophy across poetry, prose, and cinema. Her work is not merely artistic expression—it is resistance, refuge, and a call for peace.

Buddhist shrines were 'massively destroyed' by Brahmanical rulers: Historian DN Jha

Nalanda mahavihara By Rajiv Shah Prominent historian DN Jha, an expert in India's ancient and medieval past, in his new book , "Against the Grain: Notes on Identity, Intolerance and History", in a sharp critique of "Hindutva ideologues", who look at the ancient period of Indian history as "a golden age marked by social harmony, devoid of any religious violence", has said, "Demolition and desecration of rival religious establishments, and the appropriation of their idols, was not uncommon in India before the advent of Islam".

Asbestos contamination in children’s products highlights global oversight gaps

By A Representative A commentary published by the International Ban Asbestos Secretariat (IBAS) has drawn attention to the challenges governments face in responding effectively to global public-health risks. In an article written by Laurie Kazan-Allen and published on March 5, 2026, the author examines how the discovery of asbestos contamination in children’s play products has raised questions about regulatory oversight and international product safety. The article opens by reflecting on lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic, noting that governments in several countries were slow to respond to early warning signs of the crisis. Referring to the experience of the United Kingdom, the author writes that delays in implementing protective measures contributed to “232,112 recorded deaths and over a million people suffering from long Covid.” The commentary uses this example to illustrate what it describes as the dangers of underestimating emerging threats. Attention then turns...

India’s green energy push faces talent crunch amidst record growth at 16% CAGR

By Jag Jivan* A new study by a top consulting firm has found that India’s cleantech sector is entering a decisive growth phase, with strong policy backing, record capacity additions and surging investor interest, but facing mounting pressure on talent supply and rising compensation costs .

The kitchen as prison: A feminist elegy for domestic slavery

By Garima Srivastava* Kumar Ambuj stands as one of the most incisive voices in contemporary Hindi poetry. His work, stripped of ornamentation, speaks directly to the lived realities of India’s marginalized—women, the rural poor, and those crushed under invisible forms of violence. His celebrated poem “Women Who Cook” (Khānā Banātī Striyāṃ) is not merely about food preparation; it is a searing indictment of patriarchal domestic structures that reduce women’s existence to endless, unpaid labour.

The price of silence: Why Modi won’t follow Shastri, appeal for sacrifice

By Arundhati Dhuru, Sandeep Pandey* In 1965, as India grappled with war and a crippling food crisis, Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri faced a United States that used wheat shipments under the PL-480 agreement as a lever to dictate Indian foreign policy. Shastri’s response remains legendary: he appealed to the nation to skip one meal a day. Millions of middle-class households complied, choosing temporary hunger over the sacrifice of national dignity. Today, India faces a modern equivalent in the energy sector, yet the leadership’s response stands in stark contrast to that era of self-reliance.

Beyond sattvik: Purity, caste and the politics of the Indian kitchen

By Rajiv Shah A few week ago, I was forwarded an article that appeared in the British weekly The Economist . Titled “Caste and cuisine: From honeycomb curry to blood fry: India’s ‘untouchable’ cooking”, it took me back to what I had blogged about what was called a “ sattvik food festival”, an annual event organised by former Indian Institute of Management-Ahmedabad professor Anil Gupta.

Search This Blog