Chennai, Nov 3 : The latest downpour by the North East Monsoon has hit the business of the Tamil Nadu’s fisherman very hard, as heavy rains and storms have prevented them from venturing out to sea.

Thousands of fishing boats sit docked at the Kasimedu and Srinivasapuram fishing harbours in Chennai, as strong winds lashed the sea with threatening waves.

The fishing business has been severely affected and fishermen are struggling to make ends meet as they have incurred losses worth million of rupees over the past ten days.

Fishermen, eager to go out to the sea, are forced to reckon with nature's fury as they sit idle and wait for the gusty winds to slow down.

Babu, a fisherman appealed to the government for help.

"We belong to the Kasimedu fishermen community in Tamil Nadu. For the past ten days, we could not go out for fishing because of gusty storms and heavy rain. The State Government should take some steps to help us," he said.

Desingh, another fisherman said they have no alternative source of
livelihood.

"According to fish buyers, vendors and workers, nearly 400,000 people are involved in the fishing business. On the Kasimedu side, the fishing business is severely affected causing a loss of one million rupees per day," he said.

The Meteorological Department of Chennai said, though no warning has been sent out to the fishermen, the winds continue to remain strong.

"We have not issued any warning to the fishermen. We have told them that strong winds at speeds of 45 to 50 kmph will lash the coast," said S. R. Ramanan, Director of Meteorological Department.

The sea continues to be rough with high tides but weathermen predict little rain during the next 24 hours in the region. (ANI)