Colombo. The Sri Lankan Navy has arrested 24 Indian fishermen and seized five of their boats for allegedly fishing in the country’s territorial waters. This information was given on Tuesday in an official statement. The fishermen were arrested on Monday evening during a joint operation by the Navy and the Sri Lanka Coast Guard off the coast of Karanagar in the northern Jaffna peninsula, the statement said.
They were later brought to Kankesanthurai port and handed over to the fisheries inspectorate for further action, the Navy said. A total of 252 Indian fishermen have been arrested for illegal fishing in Sri Lankan waters so far this year, he added. The arrest of fishermen has been a point of contention between India and Sri Lanka.
Sri Lankan Navy personnel also in several cases fire on Indian fishermen in the Palk Strait and seize their boats for allegedly entering Sri Lankan territorial waters. The Palk Strait is a strait separating Tamil Nadu from Sri Lanka and this water area is rich in fish.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin on Monday approached the Center over the matter and demanded action so that the fishermen from the neighboring country could be released and their boats seized by the Sri Lankan Navy. In a letter to External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, Stalin said, “The Sri Lankan Navy has apprehended 221 fishermen from Tamil Nadu this year alone.
The repeated arrests of fishermen by the Sri Lankan Navy has caused severe tension and anger among the fishermen community in Tamil Nadu who are completely dependent on fishing.” Sri Lanka has seized 105 fishing boats of Tamil Nadu fishermen so far. Huh. Stalin said that fishermen caught in previous incidents were released by Sri Lanka due to the persistent efforts of the government.
However, their fishing boats are still in the possession of Sri Lanka, he said. The Chief Minister told the External Affairs Minister, “I request you to take necessary diplomatic initiatives to stop the Sri Lankan Navy from apprehending our fishermen. Along with this, I request to release their boats as well.
