Seventy four Indian fishermen and 18 fishing boats were taken into custody by the Sri Lankan Navy yesterday for allegedly crossing the International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL), Navy Spokesperson Commander Kosala Warnakulasuriya said.

“Fifty three Indian fishermen and thirteen fishing boats were arrested yesterday at Delft Sea along with 21 Indian fishermen and five fishing boats at Talaimannar Sea for fishing in the Sri Lankan waters,” he said.

He said the arrested fishermen were to be handed over to the Department of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources at Kankesanthurai (KKS) and Talaimannar yesterday for further investigations.

A foreign new website has also confirmed the arrests. According to the website, 25 fishermen were from Rameswaram and remaining were from Jagadapattinam, Thanjavur and Karaikal in Tamil Nadu.

They had been arrested while fishing near Kachchathivu in the Palk Straits for using fishing nets banned by Sri Lanka. (Chaturanga Pradeep)