Daijiworld News Network - Udupi (GA)

Udupi, Jul 10: Perhaps never earlier had the fisheries community been hit so worst by the monsoon like this year.  The monsoon began with a bang in the last week of May and on the very second day nearly 20 fishing boats were either damaged or sunk in the deep sea.  But something worst was still to come as 6 fishermen drowned in the deep sea owing to heavy rains and storm winds.  It was a huge loss to the entire fishing community.

Now after a month, once more the community has faced similar situation.  A total of 10 fishermen had gone fishing on a boat on July 8.  (Though deep sea fishing is banned in the monsoon season, fishermen go fishing along the shore on smaller boats.)  However, these fishermen had to jump into the sea after their boat was damaged severely after a huge wave lashed into it.  The tragedy took place within 50 metres from the Malpe shore.

But out of the 10 fishermen only 9 reached the shore while one more went missing.    Jagdish (30), a resident of Kadire near Tottam drowned in the sea.  All efforts, first to rescue him and then to trace his body, proved a failure.  Finally he was fished out of the water on Sunday July 9 afternoon at Malpe beach.

Meanwhile the fishing boat "Ayyappa Prasad" has been damaged in the tragedy.  The total loss has been estimated at Rs 40,000.

State minister Dr V S Acharya, MLA K Raghupati Bhat, tahsildar K Muralidhaar visited the family of Jagdish on Sunday.

A case has been registered in the Malpe police station in this regard.