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Fishermen Adopt GPS for Pulicat Lake Demarcation, Ending Decades-Old Disputes
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News18•28-09-2026, 12:30
Fishermen Adopt GPS for Pulicat Lake Demarcation, Ending Decades-Old Disputes
- •Fishermen from Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh agreed to use GPS technology to demarcate fishing zones in Pulicat Lake, replacing traditional, unreliable markers.
- •The decision was made at a joint meeting of state officials and representatives from 25 fishing hamlets to resolve long-standing territorial disputes.
- •A proposed system involves GPS transponders on fishing vessels, triggering alerts if boundaries are breached, and notifying Marine Police.
- •The initiative aims to resolve a decade-old legacy of violence, including 199 pending police cases against Tamil Nadu fishermen, with calls for charges to be withdrawn.
- •A Rs 133.11 crore project to open the Rayadoruvu sea mouth is underway to replenish fish stocks and reduce cross-border poaching friction.
Key Questions Answered
Representatives from 25 fishing hamlets unanimously resolved to discard traditional boundary markers in favour of a permanent GPS tracking mechanism to clearly demarcate inter-state fishing zones.
Following representations by Tirupati MP Maddila Gurumoorthy, the Union Fisheries Ministry is executing a Rs 133.11 crore project to open and stabilise the Rayadoruvu sea mouth to replenish fish stocks.
The deployment aligns with pending amendments to the Tamil Nadu Marine Fisheries Regulation Act that will make intentionally disabling or tampering with a vessel's transponder a criminal offense.
