Sri Lanka navy apprehends 14 fishermen from Tamil Nadu, total rises to 88 this year

MADURAI: Sri Lankan Navy apprehended 14 fishermen from Rameswaram and confiscated their two trawlers for allegedly fishing in their territorial waters late on Saturday, raising the total number of Indian fishermen in Sri Lankan custody to 88 this year.

The fishermen were handed over to fisheries officials in Kilinochchi district and are likely to be produced before a local court before being lodged in Vavuniya prison.

The two trawlers were among over 500 that sailed from Rameswaram fishing harbour on Saturday morning. Sri Lankan Navy said it deployed a fast attack craft and inshore patrol craft to drive away Indian fishing boats that were poaching in the sea area north of Mannar. They seized two of the boats and arrested the 14 fishermen who continued engaging in illegal fishing, they said.

Meanwhile, a fishing trawler from Rameswaram sank off the island's Dhanushkodi coast on Saturday night after its hull developed a crack. The seven-member crew was rescued by nearby trawlers.