BJP’s maiden battle in Left stronghold hinges on fishermen and ryots issues

TIRUCHY: The coastal constituency, with fishermen fighting long for their rights over fishing around Katchatheevu, is witnessing a BJP candidate on the political scene for the first time. Resting on a fishing ban period, which begins Monday, the fishermen in this reserved constituency with a strong Leftist vote bank are going to give a tough time for the candidates of the saffron party and its former ally AIADMK.

Dominated by a fishing and farming economy, with a decent tourism sector because of the presence of many spiritual sites, it would be tough for the BJP to show its strength as its 10 years of rule and performance would be put to test. Carved out from the combined Thanjavur district in 1991, Nagapattinam has a coastal stretch of about 187 kilometers and its fishers are often found at the receiving end of the Sri Lankan Navy while fishing in the Palk-bay area, allegedly because of crossing maritime borders.

The six Assembly segments under this constituency include Nagapattinam, Kilvelur (SC), and Vedaranyam from Nagapattinam district apart from Tiruvarur, Nannilam, and Thiruthuraipoondi (SC) Assembly constituencies from Tiruvarur district.

Not just fishing, farming is also a problem area for this constituency as it falls in the tail-end of the Cauvery Delta with 1.37 Lakh hectares of cultivable area for both the samba and kuruvai cultivation. This makes the ryots dependent on abundant flow in the Cauvery to get enough water to do farming. That’s why Cauvery row with Karnataka is an emotional issue in this constituency, making the Leftist movement with their mobilisation of the grassroots a key factor in the polls.

The tsunami-hit region, also affected by cyclones, is home to to 1,064 mechanised fishing boats, one of the largest in the state. The Nagapattinam seat also has iconic pilgrimage sites including the Shrine Basilica at Velankanni, Hazrat Syed Shahul Hameed Dargah at Nagore. These apart, there are plenty of temples at the heart of the town, highlighting the untapped tourism potential.

Poor infrastructure, especially even arterial roads in bad condition, is making it difficult to promote Nagapattinam as a major tourism hub. Tourists who find their way to the tourist spots of Nagapattinam on their own are hit by the lack of amenities, making it one of the important poll issues.

The INDIA bloc has allotted the segment for the CPI which has a traditional vote bank and fielded V Selvaraj. AIADMK has nominated G Surjeet Sankar. Interestingly BJP has fielded the son of a veteran Leftist. SGM Ramesh, son of a late Communist leader SG Murugaiyan, is BJP’s choice for the seat. NTK has fielded M Karthika.

The constituency has elected CPI candidates seven times in the past. Indian National Congress (INC) party won from the constituency five times. DMK leader AKS Vijayan successfully won this seat thrice, which is a shot in the arm for the CPI candidate as his party contests in alliance with Stalin-led Dravidian major. AIADMK has won twice, in 1984 and 2014.

Fishermen and their issues are considered deciders in this seat. It’s a perennial issue for them demanding protection from arrests, and attacks by the Sri Lankan Navy, which of late also impounds boats too. Fishermen claim that the retrieval of Katchatheevu is a dead issue but at least want fishing rights around the isle, without troubles from Lankan Navy. They also demand facilities for fish landing and storage in the harbour and want the government to reconsider the 63-day fishing ban period and reduce it to 40 days.

Farmers who are involved in rainfed cultivation have been demanding schemes for irrigation and ensuring Cauvery water till the tail-end regions of Nagapattinam, also demand a policy for farm labourers to uplift exploitation.