Palaniswami asks Modi to intervene in Sri Lankan Navy’s arrest of TN fishermen
Tamil Nadu fishermen did not venture out for fishing on Sunday and have demanded the Centre to find a solution for the frequent mid-sea skirmishes
Chennai: Tamil Nadu chief minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami on Sunday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and sought immediate intervention of the Centre after 12 fishermen were apprehended by the Sri Lankan Navy.
This is a fifth such arrest by the Sri Lankan Navy in March.
“It has been reported that six fishermen set sail in a mechanised fishing boat sail from Jegathapattinam fishing base and six more fishermen in another mechanized boat from Kottaipattinam fishing base, both in Pudukottai district, were apprehended by the Sri Lankan Navy in the early hours of 26.3.2017 and taken to Karainagar in Sri Lanka," Palaniswami wrote in his letter.
The chief minister also highlighted the fact that this incident comes after the meetings of the external affairs minister with Tamil Nadu state ministers and fishermen in the last two weeks. “This again creates anxiety and unrest in the minds of our fishermen," he wrote.
Earlier in March, a 21-year-old fisherman was allegedly killed by the Sri Lankan Navy and Ramanathapuram district witnessed week-long protests. The fishermen in the state did not venture out for fishing and had demanded the Centre to find a solution for the frequent mid-sea skirmishes.
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The agitations were withdrawn after the talks between fishermen delegation and Union ministers Nirmala Sitharaman and Pon Radhakrishnan.
Following this, Sri Lanka and India agreed to release fishermen held in each other’s custody after a high-level discussion. While 77 fishermen were released, some were still held captive. At present, 38 fishermen and 133 fishing boats are in Sri Lanka custody.
“A firm, clear, unequivocal and unambiguous message should be sent out by the Government of India to Sri Lanka to ensure that these apprehensions are stopped and the livelihood of the poor and innocent fishermen from Tamil Nadu who are engaged in their traditional occupation and fish in their traditional waters are protected," Palaniswami wrote to PM Modi.
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