Sena (UBT) MP seeks relief for Sassoon Dock fishers, meets Union minister

Hindustan Times

5 days ago

MUMBAI: As tensions escalate between the fishing community and the port authorities at Sassoon Dock, Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Arvind Sawant has stepped in to end the stand-off. Advocating for the Kolis, traders and others involved in the fish trade at Mumbai's largest dock, Sawant met Union minister for ports, shipping and waterways, Sarbananda Sonowal on Wednesday, and pressed for a resolution to the crisis without the fisher folk being evicted. Sena (UBT) MP seeks relief for Sassoon Dock fishers, meets Union minister
Also present at the meeting was Sushilkumar Singh, chairperson of the Mumbai Port Authority (MbPA), which is pushing to evict fisher folk from the 60 warehouses it owns at the dock. At the heart of the crisis is a move by the MbPA to charge rent at Ready Reckoner rates, which the community says is out of their reach. Backed by a police team, the MbPA arrived at the dock on Tuesday, to evict the fisher folk but had to retreat due to fierce resistance.
In a post on X on Wednesday evening, Sawant shared details of his meeting with Sonwal and Singh. He said, 'In this meeting, I conveyed the ground reality of the fishermen community regarding the unjust actions being taken on the warehouses at Sassoon Dock and other pending matters. I requested that the eviction action against poor fishermen from warehouse number 158 be stopped. The minister agreed to this request. He also assured that the decision taken on June 12, 2015, by the then Union Minister Nitin Gadkari will soon be implemented. This decision will be a great relief and bring justice to the fishing community.'
HT was the first to report, on June 28 and July 8, on how the MbPA's ultimatum over rents could see the port authorities evicting the fishing community from its warehouses, which double as critical fish-processing centres before the catch goes out into the supply chain.
Calling Wednesday's meeting a significant success, Sawant said he is committed to protecting the interests of those who contribute to the national economy through fish exports and trade. HT reached out to Sawant, but he was unavailable for comment.
Koli leaders said Sawant emphasised the non-implementation of a key decision taken in 2015 under the chairmanship of then Union shipping minister, Nitin Gadkari. The decision, taken on June 12, 2015, had mandated the repossession of godowns by rightful tenants.
Another key issue raised by Sawant at the meeting was the reinstatement of Godown No 158 and galas to their 'rightful sub-tenants'.
Another key issue raised was the steep hike in licence fees by MbPA, which Sawant said contradicted earlier assurances made in a meeting on January 27, 2021. The enhanced fees have led to the closure of several fish auction houses. He urged the Union minister to roll the fees back to their 2001 levels, to between ₹7,000 and ₹8,000 a year.
Sawant also requested that construction work on both the new and old jetties be completed by July 31, 2025, to ensure uninterrupted fish trade activities.
On the issue of fish trade timings, Sawant urged that early morning trading begin only from 4:30am, as overnight operations are leading to various problems, including safety concerns.