Kolkata, Sep 3 (PTI) A public hearing will be held in West Bengal’s Purba Medinipur district on September 6 to formulate the updated coastal zone management plan after a group of fishermen complained that they were left out of the process earlier.
In a letter to the West Bengal State Coastal Zone Management Authority (WBSCZMA) on Thursday, the district administration said that a fresh public hearing will be held to finalise the draft Coastal Regional Zone Notification after Purba Medinipur Matsyajibi Forum (PMMF) complained that they were left out of the earlier one held in August.
“This is to inform you that the public hearing to finalise the Coastal Regional Zone Notification, 2019 may again be conducted on September 6, 2022 at the district administrative building, Nimtouri,” the letter said.
Dakshin Banga Matsyajibi Forum (DMF) president Debasis Shyamal told PTI that this development vindicated their stand that the views of fishermen were not heard in the earlier hearing on August 22.
“Apparently the administration has acknowledged the mistake of not intimating the forum of fishermen about the hearing on such a crucial issue in a proper manner,” he said.
The PMMF is under the DMF which is the state chapter of the National Platform for Small Scale Fishworkers, comprising fishermen of different coastal states.
Whether the PMMF members will attend the September 6 hearing will be decided soon, Shyamal said.
“The environment department did not intimate our organisation’s Purba Medinipur unit about the public hearing on the coastal management plan, which took place on August 22. It is tantamount to leaving out one of the important stakeholders of the coastal belt,” he said.
Striking a balance between addressing livelihood concerns of the fishermen and protecting the ecology of the coastal region is needed, and the presence of the members of the PMMF was needed in the earlier meeting, he added.
An Environment Department official said that they hope that the members of the forum would attend the September 6 hearing.
“We had followed all well-established norms, like publishing the notice for hearing in more than one Bengali daily apart from uploading it on the website. If the forum members could not access the notice or were unaware of it, it is unfortunate. We are hopeful that they will attend the September 6 hearing,” the official said. PTI SUS SOM SOM
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