Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi, Dec.20: The Sri Lankan Navy has arrested 55 Indian fishermen and seized fishing trawlers for allegedly poaching in the country’s territorial waters, bringing the total number of Indians apprehended in the last two days, according to an official statement released on Monday.
On Sunday, 12 arrests were conducted in Sri Lankan waters south of Mannar. It comes just one day after the Navy apprehended 43 Indian fishermen and seized six fishing trawlers off the coast of Jaffna’s Delft Island.
The Navy managed to capture 8 Indian fishing trawlers and 55 Indian fishermen during operations conducted by the Northern and North Central Naval Commands on the 18th and 19th of December as part of its effort to prevent poaching by Indian fishing trawlers in Sri Lankan territorial waters, the Navy said in a statement.
The procedures were carried out in accordance with COVID-19 guidelines. After the apprehended Indian fishermen’s Rapid Antigen Tests, arrangements are being made to hand them over to necessary authorities for legal prosecution, the statement reads.
Fishermen from both countries are frequently detained after mistakenly trespassing into the waters of the other. The issue of fishermen has become a key source of friction in bilateral relations.
