Eighteen fishermen who ventured into sea from the coastal village Jegadapattinam, about 75 km here on Monday, were reported to have been arrested late last night by the Sri Lankan Naval personnel. The Navy also seized five of their boats.
According to official sources, the fishermen belonging to Nagapattinam and Karaikal were scheduled to return on Tuesday. While the fishermen from Nagapattinam had ventured for fishing by three boats, those from Karaikal had gone by two boats, sources said.
The president of the Jegadapattinam Fishermen’s Welfare Association, G. Ramakrishnan, condemned the arrest of the fishermen by the Sri Lankan Naval personnel well within the Indian borders. He demanded immediate action by the State and Central governments to protect the life and property of fishermen of Pudukottai district.
The names of the arrested fishermen were given as A. Veeradas (20); P. Prakash (22); K. Sudhan (20); Rathinam (22); V. Appuraj (45); S. Ravi (40); T. Subramanian (40); R. Sakthivel (24); R. Mohanasundar (24); Ponmani (20); S. Subramanian (55); K. Nagaraj (40); R. Rangasami (50); S. Mohan (20); J. Mathi (26); J. Karthick (18); J. Tirumurugan (23); and S. Dakshinamurthy (55).
Collector visits Jegadapattinam
Accompanied by the Fisheries Department officials, the District Collector A. Suganthi rushed to Jegadapattinam where she held a meeting with the representatives of the fisherfolk.
