As hectic preparations are on to resume fishing activities after the 45-day ban, tragic struck for a group of fishermen here as their mechanised boat capsized near the Pazhaiyar fishing harbour on Thursday, in which three fishermen were killed and four others injured.
Sources said that as many as 42 fishermen from various fishing hamlets including Pazhaiayar fishing hamlet of Nagapattinam district and Pichchavaram in Cuddalore district had ventured out to sea in a mechanised boat. Since the waters were rough due to depression, the fishermen headed for the Pazhaiyar fishing harbour, when the tragedy struck. Thirty nine fishermen abandoned the boat and swam ashore. However, three fishermen including Kalyanasundaram of Aalakkudi, Mahalingam of Paneerkottam and Mathiyazhagan of Pichchavaram went missing, whose bodies were later retrieved .