The Kerala government will replace fishing equipment free of charge for fishermen in the tsunami-affected districts of Alappuzha, Kollam and Ernakulam.

State Fisheries Minister Dominic Presentation told: "We have appointed ward-level committees to prepare a list of fishermen who lost or suffered damage to their equipment in the Dec 26 tsunami."

Objections were raised when a beneficiary list was earlier prepared for the distribution of nets and catamarans.

The committees will comprise village council members, representatives of political parties, social organisations and government officials.

"The government wants all deserving people to benefit. So we decided that the best bet would be a people's committee to identify the real beneficiaries. In Ernakulam, we have already distributed fishing craft and gears," said Presentation.

About 50,000 of the state's 200,000 fishermen use traditional methods of fishing and are not reliant on modern technology.

"The total estimated loss after the tsunami for traditional fishermen is about Rs.750 million ($17 million)," said the minister, who rose from the fishing community.

"We also plan to give Rs.1,000 to each fisherman. In Ernakulam, we gave Rs.10,000 to a group of 10 fishermen."