A total of 21 Indian fishermen were apprehended by the Sri Lankan Navy off Talaimannar on Saturday night, on charges of illegal fishing activity.
The fishermen are from Mandapam and Rameswaram, according to sources in the Indian Consulate General in Jaffna.
The Navy also seized the five trawlers they were using.
The incidence of Indian fishermen being caught in Sri Lanka is again on the rise. It was only a couple of days ago that as many as 49 fishermen from Tamil Nadu, apprehended about a month ago on charges of illegal fishing activity, were released from Sri Lankan prisons after a month in custody.
The issue of fishermen from India allegedly crossing the International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL) has been an ongoing one. Representatives of certain fishermen federations recently met Sri Lanka’s Economic Development Minister Basil Rajapaksa, who was in New Delhi, to discuss the issue.
