In the 1970s, hundreds of fishermen in Royapuram lost their homes and fishing grounds when the Madras Port expansion took place. Almost a thousand people came to Kasimedu with police protection, says R. Mohanasundaram, 70, who is a fourth-generation Kasimedu resident.
“We held a meeting of our village council and since the people had nowhere to go, we allowed them to settle here,” he recalls.
He was also among the leaders who fought against a proposed move to shift fishing activities to Ennore during the port expansion plan.
“We are the original settlers along this stretch of the coast, and we went to the High Court to ensure our rights were safeguarded. The judge came to the seashore and said that we must not be disturbed. He asked us to cooperate with the port,” says Mr. Mohanasundaram.
However, like other fishermen, he too is unhappy that the Chennai Port Trust has not implemented the High Court orders to provide drinking water, public conveniences and spaces to dry fish inside the fishing harbour.
“They only want our space. Even some eight years ago, they wanted more space for a road, which we had to give to prevent accidents,” he said.
The now-bustling area, known for the city’s largest fishing harbour, is well lit and has concrete paved roads. Coastal erosion, however, is a perennial problem.
Space crunch
“Several fishing hamlets vie with each other for space here. Our area did not have as many people then. In fact, we only had mud roads and the streets were dark. We got tar roads only in 1989,” he said.
This long-time resident of Kasimedu would like to see his area improve with better hygiene and sanitation. “People must cooperate. There must be a change in their attitude,” he said.