NAGAPATTINAM: In the latest of a series of mid-sea attacks over the past few months, five fishermen from the district were assaulted allegedly by Sri Lankan assailants near the International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL) on Friday night. The assailants also allegedly robbed the fishermen of their equipment and catch before escaping.
According to sources, several groups of fishers from Arukatuthurai in Vedaranyam block of the district ventured into sea in motorised boats around noon on Friday. Many of them set their course towards southeast of Kodiyakarai eyeing better availability of crabs.
Around 11 pm, a few groups were fishing 20 nautical miles southeast of Kodiyakarai near IMBL when a group of four armed people, allegedly from Sri Lanka, confronted two of them. G Raman (51), R Ramesh (28) and J Sivakumar (41), who were in one boat, and P Ponnuthurai (51) and S Jayachandran (40), who were in another, then came under attack. The assailants also seized their equipment like global positioning system (GPS), mobile phones and their catch before fleeing the spot, sources added.
Once the fishermen returned to Arukatuthurai on Saturday morning, they reported the assault to officials of the fisheries department and the coastal security group. An investigation is under way.