In Frames | Through the channel of fear

In Frames | Through the channel of fear — the breakwater zone of Muthalappozhi harbour in Thiruvananthapuram has seen many fishing boat accidents over a decade, claiming 46 lives between 2016 and 2024.

Fear grips Shibu Waicus, 35, a fisherman at Muthalappozhi, as his twin-engine traditional fishing boat nears the exit of the breakwater zone touching the Arabian Sea off the coast of Muthalappozhi harbour in Thiruvanathapuram. Mr. Waicus, accompanied by veteran fisherman Vallerian Isac, 58, laughs nervously as the boat crosses the danger mark and sets off into the deep sea.

The breakwater zone of the Muthalappozhi harbour, about 40 km north of the Vizhinjam port, has seen many fishing boat accidents over the past decade, claiming over 46 lives between 2016 and 2024. Fishermen say the number of casualties is even higher if one takes into account the figure since 2000 when the breakwater piers were erected. There has been much debate over the method and design of the two-pier structures that extend into the sea.

When the boat slams down on the sea after holding a nose-up position while returning to land, fishermen can be seen holding on to the motor rudder handle tightly with the relief on their eyes of surviving one more day crossing the channel of fear.

The unusually rough nature of waves close to the breakwater structure is a phenomenon that developed over the years due to unscientific construction of the piers, coastal land erosion and changes in weather patterns related to the southwest monsoon.

“Unfortunately the breakwater zone was constructed without leaving sufficient distance between the two piers for the seawater to enter the land and river water to exit,” says Jackson Pollayil, president of Kerala Swatantra Matsya Thozhilali Federation, a fisherfolk organisation.

The region has seen several protests since 2016 against the unscientific construction of the breakwater causing fishermen casualties. The State government is currently focused on dredging the channel to ensure a 5-metre depth as an attempt to find a temporary solution.

“At present we are monitoring the situation and are awaiting a study report from the Central Water and Power Research Station, Pune to bring in a permanent solution to the design flaws of the breakwater system,” says Arun Mathew, Assistant Engineer, State Harbour Engineering Department, Muthalappozhi sub-division.