Thiruvananthapuram: The fishermen from the state of Kerala received a ‘big salute’ from Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Wednesday for their hard work during the floods in the state to save lives. The fishermen of Kerala played a crucial role by rescuing people trapped in the floods which claimed at least 470 lives since May 29 when the South West Monsoon set in over Kerala.

A function was held to honor the fishermen who were handed over certificates of appreciation at a function here along with the wrapping of ‘ponnada’ (shawl) around them.

He appreciated their effort without thinking about their lives, their families or any monetary gains from the government during the rescue operations.

“We need to protect this unity and go forward. Our state is very dear to us. I am giving Kerala’s big salute to the fishermen”, Mr. Vijayan said.

According to him, there is a need to make efforts for the proper rehabilitation of the affected like the building of houses for those who had lost their homes. Along with that, schools, police stations, panchayat offices and many government offices were heavily damaged due to the floods, he said.

“We need to raise our state at a much higher level”, he said, adding that the urgent need of the hour was to rebuild the whole state and take Kerala to greater heights.

The fishermen who usually live at the coastal line came for the rescue operations in their boats from several parts of the state and helped in the rescue missions to save lives. The had rescued about 65,000 stranded flood victims. During the function, Fisheries minister Mercykutty Amma and water resources minister TM Thomas Issac was also present.

The role played by the fishermen of Kerala during the rescue efforts was lauded by Congress President Rahul Gandhi who helped save tens of thousands of lives during the recent floods that ravaged the state.

Besides them, the Chief Minister took this opportunity to laud the efforts made by the policemen, defense forces, NDRF, fire force personnel and many hundreds of volunteers who were part of the rescue operations in the flood-hit state.

The floods that hit the state of Kerala this month is termed to be the deadliest seen in nearly a century and, moreover, this kind of flood situation was warned beforehand expert environmentalists and ecologists. But the warning was ignored by the successive governments of the state as well as by the government of India.

You May Also Read: Strongest And Oldest Arctic Sea Ice Breaks Up For The First Time