CHENNAI: The fishermen from Koraikuppam village left for Pulicat lakeshore on Saturday morning with heavy hearts hoping that the previous night’s rains and winds had spared their boats. But, what welcomed them on the shore went above their heads.
A seemingly wrecked unmanned aerial vehicle labeled ‘TARGET’ had washed ashore. The vehicle was two metres long and three metres wide. The villagers immediately alerted Ponneri police and Revenue Department officials.
The police recovered the vehicle remains and said some batteries and a lens were still intact. A similar vehicle washed ashore in an Odisha village nearly three months ago. The village was located just 20 km from the Indian Air Force test range.
Officials have sought details of that incident from the Indian Coast Guard. Going by its name, police suspect it to be an aerial target for surface-to-air and air-to-air weapon systems developed by Defence agencies. Tiruvallur Superintendent of Police P Aravidhan said that the vehicle will be destroyed after receiving orders from the magistrate.