Fishermen are planning a protest to demand land rights, reservation

Representative image only. File | Photo credit: The Hindu

Fish workers, who are part of the All India Fish Workers Federation, will protest near Jantar Mantar in New Delhi on Monday (31 Aug 2026), urging the Union government to look into their livelihood and provide them with health and accident insurance. They will also submit a memorandum with a charter of demands, including control over multinational fishing companies, to Union Fisheries Minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh.

The Union government must withdraw the “blue economy policy” as it subjugates the seas and coasts to multinationals, federation leaders R. Prasad and Lok Sabha MP V. Selvaraj said in a statement. They urged the Union Government to provide land and houses to all fishing families.

Children of fishery workers must get reservation and grants for higher education and job reservation in Indian Navy and Coast Guard, they said. Alleging that fish workers were being tortured by foreign countries on the pretext of violating maritime boundaries, they demanded that the Center take steps to prevent such incidents. “Ensure health insurance and accident insurance for all fishermen. Stop giving subsidies and licenses to big fishing companies and give subsidies only to traditional fishermen,” they demanded.

India is the second largest fish producing country and fish workers play a major role in generating employment, earning foreign exchange through exports and providing nutritious food to the people. “Though they are very hardworking people, they are living in a very miserable condition. Most of the workers have no proper entitlement to house and land, social security, income stability etc. Due to the unscientific economic policies of the Union government, fishermen are facing an acute crisis including loss of livelihood and eviction from their traditional habitat due to sand mining and climate change,” they said.

Published – 29 Aug 2026 22:28 IST