The Indian High Commission said on Friday that 23 Indian fishermen who were arrested by the Sri Lankan Navy for allegedly poaching in the country’s territorial waters have been released and sent to India.
The Indian High Commission here said in a tweet that 23 Indian fishermen were sent home from Colombo this morning.
On July 12, the Navy arrested six Indian fishermen in the Palk Strait area for allegedly crossing a maritime boundary.
On July 3, the Navy arrested at least 12 Indian fishermen for allegedly poaching in the country’s territorial water.
The Navy says that these arrests are part of their patrols to stop illegal fishing in the country’s territorial waters. They do this to make sure that poaching has as little of an effect as possible on local fishermen and the long-term health of Sri Lanka’s fishery resources.
Sri Lanka and India have trouble getting along over the fishermen issue.
The Sri Lankan authorities have caught Indian fishermen, more than once for allegedly crossing the International Maritime Boundary line and Fishing in the country’s waters.
