RAMESWARAM: In a noble gesture, the Sri Lankan Navy has rescued six Rameshwaram fishermen, whose boat drifted into Lankan territorial waters due to an engine snag. The Navy personnel reached the spot and tried to repair the engine in vain. They later alerted the boat owner on land and asked him to take steps to tow back the boat.
The Navy boat also towed the stranded fishing boat to the international borders and handed it over to fishermen sent by the boat owner. On Saturday, over 400 mechanised boats from Rameswaram fishing harbour left for the sea. The boat with fishers, including Saravanan, Alexander, Anthony and Pandi, reached the waters between Dhanushkodi and Talaimannar at midnight when their boat engine developed a snag. Sea water also began to enter the boat.
Noticing the boat on their maritime boundary line, the Lankan Navy personnel sent a patrol boat to the spot immediately. When their efforts to repair the engine went futile, they even roped in a mechanic from the Mannar Naval Base.
But, he too couldn’t fix the engine. Subsequently, the Navy sent a message “This is Sri Lankan Navy, your boat is damaged near the Mannar Naval Camp. Come immediately and retrieve it” to boat owner Raja’s phone.
Immediately, Raja dispatched a boat from the Rameswaram fishing harbour to bring the stranded fishermen and the boat. Meanwhile, the Lankan officers towed the damaged boat to the maritime border and later handed it over to the rescue trawler.