Pudukottai (Tamil Nadu), Sep 20 (UNI) The Sri Lankan Navy arrested eight Indian fishermen and confiscated their mechanized fishing trawler allegedly for violating the International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL) and unlawful poaching in their territorial waters on Monday midnight.

Tamil Nadu fisheries officials said here on Tuesday that the fishermen, hailing from Jegathapattinam coastal hamlet in Pudukottai district were detained when they were fishing on high seas close to the IMBL.

The Sri Lankan Navy in an official release said that they had conducted a special operation to chase away Indian poaching trawlers from their territorial waters. The operation led to the seizure of an Indian trawler with eight Indian nationals and fishing gear poaching in Island’s waters off Kovilan Lighthouse in Kankesanthurai Harbour.

The seized trawler with Indian fishermen was brought to Kankesanthurai and handed over to the Mailadi Fisheries Inspector for onward legal proceedings.

The Navy had nabbed 189 Indian fishermen and seized 25 Indian poaching trawlers in Sri Lanka’s waters during operations conducted so far this year and produced them to authorities for legal proceedings, the release said.

Meanwhile, the mechanised boat fishermen of Rameswaram this morning claimed that they were attacked and chased away by Lankan Naval personnel while fishing near Katchatheevu Island last night.
The Sri Lankan Navy destroyed fishing nets before chasing the trawlers at gunpoint, they said.
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