Sri Lankan navy detains 7 Rameswaram fishermen

Rameswaram: The Sri Lankan navy apprehended seven fishermen from Rameswaram and seized two mechanised boats near Neduntheevu during the early hours of Thursday allegedly for crossing the International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL). Among the seven men, three fishermen were rescued by the Sri Lankan navy after their vessel began to sink due to a technical snag in the Island nation's waters.More than 2,000 fishermen set out from the Rameswaram fishing jetty in around 400 trawlers on Wednesday. According to sources, a boat belonging to Sasikumar was intercepted by the Sri Lankan navy at midnight near Neduntheevu, leading to the arrest of Ramar, 38, Veeranan, 55, Karuppiah, 53, and Abraham, 23.Around the same time, another boat owned by Simpson faced a crisis while returning to the coast. The vessel's side wooden planks gave way, causing seawater to gush in, and it started sinking. The three crew members—Srinivasan, Sebastian, and Susai Viyagulam—jumped into the sea and managed to stay afloat by clinging to ice boxes and diesel cans for several hours. They were eventually spotted and secured by the Sri Lankan navy. The navy also pulled out the sinking boat. All seven fishermen were taken to the Karainagar naval base. They will be produced before the Jaffna court and likely to be remanded in judicial custody.