Coast Guard says it can’t verify shooting incident

Madurai: Indian Coast Guard, Mandapam station commandant N V Rama Rao refused to comment on alleged shooting by Indian Coast Guard on Rameswaram fishermen, stating that the ship was not based in Mandapam and he could not verify.

When asked if the coast guard uses 0.22 bullets which were said to be recovered by fishermen from boat, Rao said that coast guard uses such bullets which are of very low caliber like pins but he had not seen the bullets recovered by fishermen. He can neither deny nor accept shooting since the ship was not based here and he can’t verify the same.

Commenting on Union defense minister Nirmala Sitharaman stating that coast guard does not use such bullets, he opined that she could have stated because it was said rubber bullets initially, but he was not in position to comment on it, he told media persons at the sidelines of an event organised at Thangachimadam in Rameswaram in view of World Fisheries Day on Tuesday.

Rama Rao was present to the event where the document, ‘Uppukatrum Usurum’ (Salty wind and life) created by fishermen activist, U Arulanandam was released by additional director of fisheries S Sameeran. National fishermen federation president M Elango received the first copy. Rameswaram DSP Mahesh was also present.

Addressing the function, the coast guard commandant said that fishing community is like eyes and ears of maritime safety which is the reason, Indian Coast Guard organises monthly interaction programmes to learn their opinion. Indian Coast Guard wants candidates from fishermen community to enroll into the maritime agency.