Tamil Nadu - Nagapattinam   

Sri Lankan Navy “chases” fishermen

NAGAPATTINAM: Sri Lankan Navy allegedly chased the boats of fishermen of Nagapattinam district off Point Calimere in the early hours on Sunday and warned that it would open fire if they came near territorial waters for fishing. The incident has created panic among fishermen of Nagapattinam district.

On Saturday, two fishermen of Arcottuthurai hamlet on the Vedaranyam coast were killed in the alleged firing by Sri Lankan navy.A group of fishermen from Pushpavanam on the Vedaranyam coast who returned to the shore complained to officials of the Fisheries Department that they were warned by the Sri Lankan Navy and a fishing net was also damaged by the island navy.

Fishermen of most of coastal hamlets in Nagapattinam district did not venture out into the sea on Sunday as a mark of respect to the two of their colleagues killed in the alleged firing incident.

They urged the State government and Centre to take steps to ensure safety of the fishermen.

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Stories in this Section

Sri Lankan Navy “chases” fishermen

Copyright © 2008, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu