NE NEWS SERVICE
KANNYAKUMARI/KOCHI, APR 25
Eleven Tamil Nadu fishermen went missing after their boat was allegedly hit by a ship off the Oman coast, prompting the Indian Coast Guard to deploy a vessel to launch search and rescue operations.
Quoting fishermen in other boats, fishermen association leader Charles George said in Kochi that the mangled remains of the fishing boat from Tamil Nadu were found 600 nautical miles (over 1,100 kms) off the Goa coast on Saturday.
Defence sources said the Coast Guard has sent a ship from Mumbai on Saturday evening for carrying out rescue operations following the missing complaint received from the fishermen organisations.
The Coast Guard vessel is expected to reach the spot on Monday, the sources said in Kochi. However, there is no official information from the government on the nature of the reported accident.
South Asian Fishermen Fraternity (SAFF) said 11 fisherfolks from Kanyakumari district of Tamil Nadu had ventured into deep sea from Thengapattanam Fisheries Harbour, on April 9 in a mechanised boat.
In its complaint to Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre of the Coast Guard, Mumbai, the SAFF said the broken pieces of the fishing boat were found floating in the sea on April 24.
“They searched for the 11 fishermen onboard in the fishing boat Mercedes, but couldn’t find anyone. They found pieces of a country boat in a distance. Hence we fear that some accident might have taken place in the deep sea to the fishing boat and eleven fishermen who were onboard are missing”, it said, seeking necessary action. SAFF said the fishermen were in touch with other fishermen till Friday noon.
