Maharashtra News: Palghar Fishermen's Families In Despair After Diu Boat Tragedy; Seek Urgent Govt Aid
Palghar, Maharashtra: Palghar: The families of fishermen from Zai village in Palghar district are facing extreme hardship and are urgently appealing for government assistance following a tragic boat accident off the coast of Diu last month. The incident involved a vessel named 'Nirali' and has left four tribal fishermen missing and one young man dead.
Due to the scarcity of employment opportunities in their rural hometown, many young men from the region migrate to Maharashtra, Gujarat, and the Diu-Daman area to work on fishing boats. On March 4, a group of tribal fishermen from Zai village ventured out to sea for fishing near the Vanakbara port in Diu-Daman.
Tragically, on their return journey after 16 days, their boat collided with a larger vessel, resulting in a devastating accident. Four fishermen from Zai and one from Gujarat went missing in the mishap. Sadly, the body of one young fisherman, Suraj Vilas Valvi, aged 23, from Zai village, was later recovered.
The incident occurred on March 4 when the fishing boat Nirali met with a catastrophic collision near Vanakbara Port, close to the Diu coast. Four tribal fishermen from Zhāi village in Palghar district and one fisherman from Gujarat went missing after their vessel was struck by a larger boat while returning from a 16-day fishing expedition. The body of one young fisherman, Suraj Vilas Valvi, aged 23, from Zhāi village, was later recovered.
For many families in the tribal belt of Palghar, fishing is their primary livelihood. With the breadwinners now either missing or deceased, the families are struggling to survive, with some facing the brink of starvation. Relatives of the missing and deceased fishermen are appealing to both the Maharashtra state government and the Diu-Daman administration to provide urgent financial assistance and rehabilitation support.
Despite the accident having taken place more than six weeks ago, the search for the missing fishermen — Akshay Waghat, Amit Surum, Surya Shingda, and the deceased, Suraj Valvi -- has yielded no results. To date, neither the bereaved families nor the families of the missing have received any government compensation, sparking anger and frustration within the local fishing community.
Social activists have emphasized the need for the government to offer not only financial aid but also social and emotional support to the grieving families. Veteran journalist and peace activist Jatin Desai has highlighted the need to revise the outdated policy that requires a seven-year waiting period before declaring a missing person legally deceased, which has left many families without timely aid.
The tragedy has once again exposed the vulnerabilities faced by migrant tribal fishermen from Palghar’s coastal and rural areas, many of whom travel to Gujarat, Diu, and Daman in search of work on fishing boats due to a lack of local employment opportunities. The accident has also raised fresh concerns about the lack of safety measures and formal registration for these deckhands, leaving them unprotected in times of crisis.
During the COVID-19 lockdown, several such fishermen were stranded for weeks in Gujarat, underscoring the absence of social security nets for these marginalized communities. Activists are now demanding comprehensive insurance schemes, safety measures, and formal registration systems to ensure the welfare of fishermen who risk their lives daily to earn a living from the sea.
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