India, Sept. 17 -- Sassoon Dock, one of the city's most vital hubs for the fishing industry, came to a grinding halt on Tuesday, amid mounting fears of eviction. The fishing community, which uses the warehouses at the dock as fish processing centres, halted operations and also refused to send their trawlers out to sea.

The fishing community has been locked in battle with the Mumbai Port Authority (MbPA) for more than a decade as the MbPA has been attempting to claim dues worth Rs.115 crore. The community, however, fears that the port authority wants to altogether evict them and reclaim the warehouses.

Krishna Pawle, president of the Shiv Bharatiya Port Sena, said, "We have learnt that a letter has been given by MbPA to the state fisheri...