The Indian Coast Guard personnel on Thursday night detained as many as five Sri Lankan fishermen and have confiscated their fishing boat charged with the offence of poaching in Indian waters at about 36 nautical miles off Nagapattinam coast. The five Sri Lankan fishermen were subsequently handed over to the Tamil Nadu Coastal Security Group Personnel (CSG) and Marine police personnel at the Karaikal port on Thursday night.

According to Coastal Security Group personnel, it is said that the Indian Coast Guard patrol vessel Charlie-412 while involved in a routine patrolling activity nearby the Kodiyakkarai waters was said to have intercepted a Sri Lankan fishing boat straying deep into the Indian territorial waters on Thursday night. Apparently, the Coast Guard patrol vessel detained the Sri Lankan fishing boat bearing the registration name and number Shalika IMUL-A-1014-MTR at about 36 nautical miles off Nagapattinam coast. Besides, as many as five Sri Lankan fishermen on board the fishing boat including Kinsili (44), L Y Mahadev (33), WA Sujeet Piande (44), Ejav Mahesh Kumar (22), and Liaro Ramesh (23) all hailing from Trincomalee and Mandhai localities in Northern Province of Sri Lanka were detained by the Coast Guards. On interrogating the five Sri Lankan nationals, it was found that the fishermen had ventured from the Jaffna coast on May 22, 2015 and were found to have strayed deep into the southwest waters of Kodiyakkarai coast in Nagapattinam district on Thursday night.

After the mid-sea apprehension, the five detained fishermen and their fishing boat were brought to Karaikal port on Thursday night at about 11 pm for joint enquiry and were subsequently handed over to the Tamil Nadu Coastal Security Group Personnel and Marine police for further legal actions. CSG sources said that the five Lankan fishermen would be produced before the Vedaranyam Judicial Magistrate court and are most likely to be lodged at the Puzhal prison on Friday. It is said that the catches found in the detained Sri Lankan fishing boat would be auctioned and the respective sum would be handed over to the Nagapattinam treasury.
(The New Indian Express)