COLOMBO: Sri Lanka's new navy chief Vice Admiral Travis Sinniah today said that he would implement "new strategies and tactics" to prevent Indian fishermen from allegedly poaching in the country's territorial waters.
"This issue has been going on for over 100 years," Sinniah told reporters. "We are working closely with the Indian Navy and the Coastguard to prevent Indian fishermen from crossing the international maritime border," he added.
Sinniah, who played a decisive role in the destruction of the LTTE warships in deep sea during the height of the civil war, said he would ensure more presence of the Navy along the international maritime border to discourage poaching. He was appointed as the chief of Sri Lanka's naval forces last week, making him the first from the minority Tamil community to head the Navy since the brutal civil war erupted in the country 45 years ago.
Sinniah maintained that the Lankan Navy's role will be to guide Indian fishermen away from Lankan waters and generally discourage them from breaching the maritime border. Fishermen from the two countries often stray into each others' waters, creating diplomatic difficulties. Indian fishermen often accuse the Lankan Navy of firing at their fishing trawlers.