Four Nagai fishers escape mid-sea ‘SL’ gang attack

They, however, had to cut off their nets, weighing around 300 kg, and abandon them at sea while fleeing.

The remaining fishing net Pushpavanam fishers salvaged during the encounter with armed gang from Sri Lanka on Tuesday night (Photo | Express)

NAGAPATTINAM: A group of four from the district escaped assault by an armed gang, allegedly from Sri Lanka, while fishing near Kodiyakarai in the early hours of Wednesday. They, however, had to cut off their nets, weighing around 300 kg, and abandon them at sea while fleeing.

M Madharasan (26), M Rajendiran (60), Sachin (23) and A Naveen (23) ventured into sea in a motorised boat from Pushpavanam in Vedaranyam taluk on Tuesday afternoon.

While the group was pulling back the nets they cast into sea southeast of Kodiyakarai past midnight, a gang on another motorised boat came towards them, brandishing weapons. Fearing that the gang would board their boat and assault them, the fishermen cut off their nets and fled, sources said.

SL Navy nabs 21 Pudukai men for IMBL violation

Pudukkottai: A total of 21 fishers from the district were arrested by Sri Lankan navy on Wednesday evening for allegedly crossing the IMBL. The arrested fishermen hailing from Jegathapattinam and Kottaipattinam were part of around 1,000 who put out to sea in over 200 mechanised boats that morning.ENS