Ramanathapuram: The Sri Lankan Navy arrested six Indian fishermen and impounded their fishing dhow for allegedly fishing in the Island nation’s territorial waters.
The six fishermen namely C Dhanasekaran (37), M Satheesh (18), K Madhavan (35), M Singaravelan (20), A Siva (35) and P Sathyabala (19), all hailing from Nambuthalai coastal hamlet in Thiruvadanai taluk in Ramanathapuram district , had ventured into the sea in a country boat on Tuesday morning from Pudukottai for fishing. While they were fishing near International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL) on Tuesday night, a Fast Attack Craft belonging to the Northern Naval Command of Sri Lankan Navy arrested them on the charge of fishing in the Island nation’s territorial waters in the North off Kovilan.
The arrested fishermen along with their dhow and fishing gear were handed over to the Assistant Fisheries Director, Jaffna this morning for onward legal action.
Following which, the family members of the six fishermen, led by M Karunamurthy, district secretary, Federation of Fishermen Associations, today presented a petition to Collector S Natarajan urging him to take necessary steps to ensure the immediate release of the fishermen along with their dhow.