PUDUKKOTTAI: Twelve fishermen of Pudukkottai district were arrested by Sri Lankan navy from within the Indian territorial waters during on Tuesday. Their three machinated boats also confiscated by the navy.
Sources said that 1,100 fishermen of Jegathapattinam and another 1,000 from Kottaipattinam had gone into the sea in 600 machinated boats on Monday from Jegathapattinam and Kottaipattinam jetties. As per their routine, they should have reached the jetty on Tuesday morning, but of the 600, three did not reach jetties, of them two belonged to Kottaipattinam and one was from Jegathapattinam.
On information, the functionaries of Jegathapattinam Machinated Fishermen Association began a search for their fellow fishermen. Later, they were told that four fishermen of Jegathapattinam and eight fishermen of Kottaipattinam were arrested.
Meanwhile, DMK patriarch M Karunanidhi on Tuesday appealed to the Centre to take steps to secure the immediate release of the 64 fishermen languishing in Sri Lankan prisons and initiate talks with Colombo to arrive at a permanent solution to the festering issue.