Paradip

Paradip, August 26 (LocalWire): Prices of hilsa have gone up as catch has dipped by 90 percent ever since fishermen have ceased going out to the sea due to the threat of COVID-19.

Nearly 700 trawlers used to go to sea to catch fish, but now, due to shortage of crew members and the COVID threat, many trawlers are not at sea.

Fishermen who returned to other districts and states due to COVID-19 have not yet returned to Paradip, causing a shortage of manpower.

Currently, only 150-180 trawlers are operating in the sea, causing acute shortage of fish in the market.

On the other hand, Paradip Municipality has banned the sale of mutton and chicken in Paradip for the last 10 days under the direction of Supreme Court, for which, the demand for fish is high among local people.

Fish trader Shanti Raj Sarakar informed, “Each trawler spends nearly Rs 30,000 but we catch fishes worth Rs 5000 to Rs 8000 so we are forced to sell Hilsa fish at the rate of Rs 200 to Rs 250 per kg in Paradip to compensate the losses,” he added.

The drop in the catch of fish has come as a major threat to the livelihood of these fishermen in the Jagatsinghpur and Kendrapara districts.

Besides the fishermen, daily earnings of the weavers of fishing nets, traders, trading agents, ice factory owners has also waned.

Executive Officer of Paradip Municipality Duryodhan Patel has informed, “By the direction of Supreme Court, Paradip Municipality has banned the sale of mutton and chicken from 15th to 24th August 2020 for which the demand of fishes is high in the local market.

The ban has been lifted from today,” he added.

LocalWire

Paradip, Aug 18 (LocalWire): Jagatsinghpur district administration has asked various industries to provide the local youth, especially skilled and unskilled workers come back from other states due to COVID-19, with employment opportunities.

Nearly 20,000 migrant workers returned to their native villages in Jagatsinghpur due to loss of employment during the lockdown that was imposed initially to curb the spread of the virus, sources said.

Saroj Pradhan of Balikuda said, “We are skilled workers and we have chosen to work under MGNREGS.

Many are reluctant to work under this scheme due to the meagre wage of Rs. 207 per day for skilled workers.”

Other harried migrant workers have expressed their sorrow, “There are no jobs here, for which we have decided to return to other states in search of employment.”

Collector Sangram Keshari Mohapatra has requested all industries and companies in Paradip to avoid bringing skilled and unskilled workers from outside the state.

He has asked them to engage these local skilled and unskilled labourers and migrant returnees in work.

Companies have been asked to contact the project director, DRDA, district labour officers and local BDOs to acquire details about the skill mapping of the migrant workers.  

Larsen and Turbo, which has been pressed in the construction work of Paradip Refinery of IOCL, said that most companies are finding it difficult to fill in the present skill gap from the available pool of workmen.

L&T has already sourced more than 70% of their present strength of about 3000 workmen from the home state for their two projects with IOCL refinery.

They further require many highly skilled & experienced workmen, who are acquainted with this risky and specialized aspect of refinery construction work and have almost exhausted the possibilities of further sourcing from the available list.

Delay in fulfilling the balance manpower gap could potentially delay this project of national importance, sources said.

LocalWire

Paradip, June 10 (LocalWire): Activists from Kujang Yuva Parishad and Paradip Youth Engineering Association carried out a Padayatra and submitted a memorandum to the organization demanding jobs for thousands of migrant returnees.

Sources said that nearly 13,000 migrants have returned from states like Mumbai, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, where they were working before the lockdown.

After being discharged from quarantine, they have no jobs and no work.

Paradip, which is considered an industry hub, has not offered much in way of opportunities to the local youth, for which they are frustrated.

Different industries have ignored local youth in the unskilled sector.

Activists of both Parishad and Association conducted a 20 km Pada Yatra from Kujang to Paradip today and demanded the creation of job opportunities for migrant returnees.

President of Paradip Youth Engineering Association Laxmi Prasad Behera has informed, “It is time for the state or union government to provide jobs in local industries to local youths, especially migrant returnees.

The Andhra Pradesh government has made it mandatory for existing and upcoming industries in the state to reserve 75 percent jobs for local youths; we have also demanded the same in our state,” he added.

The activists of Kujang Yuva Parishad led by its president Akhaya Das accompanied by other activists joined this pada yatra and submitted their memorandum to ADM of Paradip, Kanhu Charan Dhir.

LocalWire

Paradip, May 3 (LocalWire): Not so long ago, decorated camels and horses could be seen standing on the sand at Paradip sea beach, giving rides to excited children as well as grown-ups.

These were a source of income for the people who used to keep them, while also being the means of sustenance for the animals themselves.

However, due to the lockdown for COVID-19, the owners of the animals have lost their only source of income and are struggling for survival.

It is becoming more and more difficult for them to provide food for animals.

Two such animals have been abandoned by their caretaker in the port city of Paradip. Now, one camel and one horse are moving from place to place looking for food.

Their noses are torn, the fur has been replaced by sores and the once-mighty frame has been reduced to a skeleton.

The Secretary of the district board of the International Human Rights Council, Subrat Nayak, has said “Without a proper license, owners have been using these animals for earning a livelihood through the entertainment of tourists.

There must be regular veterinary inspection but nothing has been done for the safety of animals”.

Besides this, monkeys, swans, and other birds that are living in different temples of this district are struggling to get food for survival because all temples have been closed due to lockdown.

Hungry monkeys are causing mayhem in local villages by destroying vegetables and other crops due to an acute shortage of food.

LocalWire

Paradip, 27 Feb (LocalWire) The dredging of silted Mahanadi river mouth by Paradip port was completed on Thursday, the port trust chairman Rinkesh Roy said.

It was last dredged almost 20 years back. Since the river mouth was silted over the years, the fishing vessels were facing problem to navigate.

The Dredger of Dredging Corporation of India had commenced the dredging work at the cost of Rs.15 crore last month.

LocalWire