Five Sri Lankan fishermen were detained by the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) for allegedly netting in Indian waters on Sunday.
Their mechanised boat was also seized, ICG commandant Anand Kumar said, adding that the Lankans would be produced at the Thermal Police Station here on Monday morning.
In a related development, three days after they were arrested by the Sri Lankan navy, 34 fishermen from Rameswaram returned with their mechanised boats to Rameswaram jetty on Saturday evening.
Local fishermen had started an indefinite strike on Saturday to protest the arrest of the group, who were taken along with their five vessels to Delft Island by the Lankan navy. They were produced before a court at Mallakam, which subsequently ordered their release. Following the order, the Lankan navy took the group to the International Maritime Boundary Line and handed them over to the ICG.
The fishermen were received by their families, co-workers and local association leaders. Meanwhile, 19 other fishermen who were detained with their four boats, are yet to return from the island nation.
(Source: New Indian Express)
