NAGAPATTINAM: A group of nine Tamil Nadu fishers, stranded in Sri Lankan waters for five days after their fishing boat suffered an engine failure, was rescued in a cross-border operation involving authorities of both nations. Their boat was towed back to Nagapattinam by another fishing vessel on Tuesday.
The group, led by S Selvamani from Nagore, had ventured into the sea on December 29 aboard Venkatammal, a mechanised deep-sea fishing boat. Accompanying him were two fishermen from Vanavanmahadevi and six others from Nayakkarkuppam in Mayiladuthurai district.
“While we were fishing around 90 nautical miles east of Nagapattinam on December 30, turbulence caused water to enter the engine’s exhaust, stalling it. The waters were too deep for anchoring, so we deployed drogue parachute to slow our drift,” Selvamani told TNIE.
Despite contacting fisherfolk representatives and the fisheries department in Chennai through VHF, the boat drifted beyond the International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL) into Sri Lankan waters on January 2, losing communication. Sri Lankan fishers spotted the boat and informed their authorities. Indian authorities also reached out to their Sri Lankan counterparts seeking permission for rescue mission.
On January 3, a team comprising four fishers from Nagore, led by V Saminathan, set out for the search and rescue mission on a deep-sea fishing boat. Relief finally came on January 5 at 3 am when the fishing boat was located 60 nautical miles near Sri Lanka’s Trincomalee. Lankan navy and fishers provided food and assistance to the stranded fishers for two days until Nagore fishers arrived, Selvamani said. Both boats reached Nagapattinam at 1 am on Tuesday.
“All nine fishers are safe. We are grateful to the Lankan Navy and our fishers,” said T Elamvazhudi, joint director of Fisheries and Fishermen Welfare department.