With the demand of prawn growing in the international market, the prawn traders, in their thirst for the riches out of export earning, were attracted towards Chilka, finding its semi-saline water and natural condition favourable to produce more prawns with less investment, thereby increasing their profits. The capital invested in the aquaculture has proved its capacity to mobilise the state government, its administration, the police, and the politicians belonging to various bourgeois-landlord political parties. The capacity of this capital and its consequent cruelty were openly exhibited on May 29-30 midnight.

POLICE BRUTALITY

It was around 12:30 a m on May 30. The village called Soran, on the shore of Chilka, was asleep when a joint contingent of police and hired anti-socials deputed by prawn traders entered the village. It was led by the district collector and superintendent of police of Khurda, alongwith junior officers like the sub-collector and tehsildars. They encircled the office of the Fishermen Mahasangha and arrested its leaders who, after the day long tiresome operation of removing the gheries (make-shift boundaries), were taking rest so that they could wake up early on the next morning and undertake the unfinished task.

The news of this arrest of the leadership spread very quickly in the village and hundreds of the villagers came forward to request the police for their release. With the police refusing to concede this request, the people were left with no other option but to obstruct their way. The police force then started retaliation by resortint to lathicharge, followed by teargas shelling. Finally the police and the anti-socials resorted to indiscriminate firing. Pramila Behera and Banchhanidhi Behera were shot dead. Digambar Behera succumbed to injury on his way to hospital while Sudarshan Behera died in the hospital. Many more injured fishermen, both male and female, young and old, are struggling for life in the hospitals in Bhubaneswar and Cuttack.

The chief minister, Giridhar Gomango, pleaded his innocence and claimed that he was kept in dark. If this statement is true, then it exposes the chief minister's incapability and establishes the capacity of the capital and the capitalists who have brought the state administration to its knees, even while keeping the chief minister in dark.

What was the objective of the police misadventure on May 29-30 midnight? Certainly, it did not aim at maintaining law and order, since there was no law and order problem in the area at that time. If the objective of the misadventure had been to maintain law and order, why were the anti-socials allowed to accompany the police force? The fishermen suspect the very intention of the police and administration in this regard. They suspect that perhaps the motive of the administration was to hand over the leadership of the federation to the prawn traders. After arresting the leaders and keeping them hostage, the administration would have demanded that the fishermen surrender and announce the withdrawal of their agitation.

FISHERMEN'S AGITATION

The fishermen had to resort to a militant agitation when the government and the administration continued to ignore their plight and play deaf to their prayers. After losing their livelihood, they had been moving from pillar to post but nobody took interest in solving their problem. When fishing was not fetching any profits, and was a hated profession under the feudal conception, the job was left to Dalits, the traditional fishermen. Of the upper castes, only the poorer sections engaged in fishing under the compulsion of life. But when fishing became profitable it ceased to be the exclusive profession of the socially oppressed people; the people from other castes and classes also started to encroach upon it.

With the abolition of estates, Chilka came under the jurisdiction of the government of Orissa's revenue department. After being divided into sairats (zones), it was given on lease to fishermen's cooperatives for fishing. With the importance of prawn growing in the international market, competition for aquaculture started to be intensified. This is what led to periodic clashes among fishermen and others.

Even the Tatas were attracted to this field. In 1992, they managed to obtain on lease 950 acres in Chilka for aquaculture. This happened following the policy decision of the then Biju Patnaik government to lease out 40 per cent of the area for aquaculture and keep 60 per cent free for captures. That was the time when Biju Patnaik was trying to ride roughshod to implement the Narasimha Rao led central government's policy of liberalisation and privatisation. A big movement was built up against the Tatas. Since this project failed to get the clearance of the central environmental ministry, the Tatas had to quit with bag and baggage. But the mini-Tatas, comprising traders, bureaucrats, police officers and bourgeois party politicians, gradually occupied the lake.

THE COURT VERDICT

The fishermen challenged this policy of the state government in Orissa High Court in 1992. In its judgement, the court proclaimed: "The present policy, however, "tilts" much towards non-fishermen." It further said: "...increase in the revenue by itself may not be a good ground for departure from the policy pursued up to the end of 1991, if, while doing so, directive principles contained in articles 38 and 46 were to be jeopardised, as it would be according to the learned counsel for the petitioners, because......any action against directive principles would be unreasonable."

The court directed the state government to appoint a fact finding committee comprising one fisherman, one non-fisherman, one environmentalist, the director of fisheries and one chairperson. The court granted stay till the a final decision on the basis of the report of this committee was taken. The committee, which was unfortunately influenced by the prawn traders, upheld the government to grant 40 per cent area for aquaculture and keep 60 per cent free for capture. The government accepted its recommendations. The traders took less area on lease and encroached more. The gheris (make-shift boundaries) obstructed the movement of fishermen's boats, depriving them of their livelihood and making their life miserable.

In the meantime, the Supreme Court, in its verdict to make Chilka pollution-free, banned aquaculture in the lake and within one kilometre of the Coast Reserve Zone. The fishermen went on approaching various authorities to get the court judgement implemented. They finally issued ultimatums. After the expiry of the dateline they undertook the job of demolishing the gheries. On May 29, they demolished it in nearly 3000 acres. The incident that took place on May 29-30 midnight was in retaliation of this very demolition of gheries. This retaliation was undertaken at the behest of prawn traders, by their collaborators in the administration and police.

REAL FACE OF CONG(I), BJP, BJD

This joint brutality venture undertaken by the police and mafia has been condemned by all sections of people. Even the state government and the ruling party had to join the chorus when the opposition condemned it. The government has suspended the district collector and the superintendent of police, appointed a judicial inquiry commission, and announced to pay compensation to the families of the deceased and also to those who were injured.

But this prompt action of the Congress government cannot hide its culpability. Because it was the state youth Congress chief, a close confidant of former chief minister J B Patnaik, who was instrumental in mobilising both the musclemen and the police in favour of the traders. It is learnt that the musclemen who accompanied the police on May 29 midnight to Soran village, used his car and also the private vehicles of one IAS and one IPS officer who engage in aquaculture.

The BJP and its ally, the Biju Janata Dal (BJD), only paid lip service to the fishermen's cause while criticising the official action. But when the fishermen federation gave call for Orissa bandh on June 5, the real face of BJP and BJD got exposed. They did not extend their support to the bandh since some of their leaders were also involved in prawn farming. A nephew of BJP legislature party leader is a case in point. Apart from the Janatal Dal, several leaders of the BJP and Biju Janata Dal, including the BJP's legislature party leader, were party to the anti-fishermen and pro-trader decision of the Biju Pattnaik government.

CPI(M) IN ACTION

Thus it was left to the Left parties alone to join in solidarity action with this fighting fishermen. On June 5, half a lakh of fishermen joined the mass action, stalled the movement of trains, paralysed the National Highway and staged picketing in front of government offices in the districts of Puri, Khurda and Ganjam, the three districts adjoining Chilka. The capital city, Bhubaneswar, also witnesses a march and picketing by fishermen. The CPI(M) contingent, led by state secretariat member Jagannath Mishra, Tapashi Praharaj, Naba Mohanty and Suresh Routry, courted arrest in the capital city Bhubaneswar. The CPI(M) organised road blockade at Cuttack, Bhadrak, Jajpur Road, Ganjam and Chhatrapur, and Rail Roko at Balasore.

The CPI(M), All India Kisan Sabha and the fishermen's union by the Centre of Indian Trade Unions are active in this movement. The state CPI(M) secretary Janardhan Pati, secretariat members Sivaji Patnaik and Jagannath Mishra, AIKS state president Abhiram Behere and fishermen's union leader Sridhar Mishra have been touring the fishermen's belt and addressing meetings. On June 13 and 14, Pitabsan Das (general secretary of West Bengal Matshyajivi Samiti) and West Bengal horticulture minister Abdul Rajak Mollah visited the villages of Sorana, Jagulaipdar and Balipatpur, addressed public meetings and paid Rs 5,000 each to the families of those who died in the police firing.