Ramanathapuram (Tamil Nadu): Sri Lanka Navy arrested 37 Indian fishermen and impounded five fishing trawlers in two separate incidents on Saturday and Sunday, allegedly for violating the International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL) and indulging in unlawful fishing activities in the Island nation’s territorial waters.
Tamil Nadu fisheries department officials said here this morning that the arrested fishermen hail from Thangachimadam and Rameswaram in Ramanathapuram district.
Meanwhile, the Sri Lankan Navy today claimed that it had conducted special operations to chase away Indian poaching trawlers from Sri Lankan waters in the evening of Saturday and on Sunday morning.
In these operations, the North Central Naval Command held three Indian poaching trawlers that continued to remain in Island waters of Mannar with 23 Indian fishermen aboard and in another incident, the Northern Naval Command apprehended two Indian poaching trawlers with 14 Indian fishermen who were indulged in unlawful poaching near the Delft Island.
The apprehended fishermen and the poaching trawlers were taken to Talaimannar Pier and Kankasanthurai Harbour, and they will be handed over to the fisheries officials for onward legal action.
The Sri Lankan Navy has arrested 174 Indian fishermen and seized 27 Indian poaching trawlers so far this year, it added.
It may be recalled that on October 14, the Lankan Navy arrested 27 fishermen from Thangachimadam and impounded five boats on similar charges.
Demanding immediate release of the arrested fishers, the Rameswaram fishermen went on strike, and after the intervention of the state government, a section of fishermen resumed fishing activities yesterday only.
