Sea Change in Melthura
Nisar Kannangara, Kalaiarasi Kandhan Sagunthala | 1 June 2025
The once-busy fishing harbour in Melthura has become a deserted beach now. Creepers and bushes spread across the beach after the fishermen left their harbour due to the difficulties of sailing their boats from the harbour. Now, some old fishermen in Melthura visit the beach in the evening. Some play cards under the shade of the coconut trees; some sit alone, looking at the sea, having deep contemplation, and embracing the wind. There are a few ruined roofless buildings on the beach; with trees growing inside and creepers spread across its wall, where the fishermen and fish merchants once negotiated deals over tea and snacks. The other traces of its old, busy life can still be seen in a few scattered, bush-covered pieces of abandoned boats. This chapter provides an ethnography of how the sea changes—such as shifts in the coastline, the impact of the sea wall, and the decline in fish catch—are reflected in the lives of people in Melthura. It also discusses how climate change plays a role in the structural transformation of the village, influencing fishing activities as well as the social and political arrangements surrounding them.

