Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi wrote to the central government February 10 urging it to negotiate with neighbouring Sri Lanka on behalf of Indian fishermen.
Drawing the union government's attention to the 'indiscriminate' firing by the Sri Lankan Navy that killed an Indian fisherman the day before, the chief minister asked the government 'to take up the matter with the Sri Lankan government,' a press statement said.
A fisherman from Pudokottai district of Tamil Nadu was killed when allegedly fired upon by the Sri Lankan Navy while fishing in the waters off the Dhanushkodi coast. Two fishermen survived the firing.
The state government has sanctioned Rs.100,000 as compensation to families of each of the fisherman killed.
At least 150 Indian fishermen have been killed in incidents of firing by the Sri Lankan Navy since the 1980s and nearly 300 have been injured.
Last year, the chief minister sought central intervention to protect Tamil Nadu's fishermen at least three times.
Sri Lanka is supposed to have mined the waters on its side of the international maritime border to prevent Indian fishermen from fishing in Lankan waters and to prevent refugees from northern Sri Lanka from crossing the Palk Strait.
Meanwhile, the Sri Lankan Navy further complicated the issue by claiming that the LTTE had attacked its patrol craft from an Indian boat.
The boat was sunk with rocket-propelled grenade fire, near the maritime boundary with India, military officials told Associated Press on condition of anonymity.
The attack reportedly claimed the lives of six sailors.
Though Sri Lanka has, in the past, expressed unhappiness over maritime violations by Indian fishermen, this is the first time it has complained to Indian authorities that an Indian trawler was used by the LTTE against its craft.
Considering the seriousness of the allegation, the Tamil Nadu Government, which acted swiftly to verify the claim, and several security agencies conducted high-level enquiries with the fishermen of Rameswaram, Jegadhapattinam, Pudukottai and Nagapattinam.
Though officials were convinced that no fisherman was involved in the shooting incident, the allegation has caused uneasiness among Indian fishermen, who fear this charge will be used to pose further threat to their livelihood and lives.
The Indian fishermen fear the Sri Lankan navy may take extreme measures if they found them in their territorial waters, particularly near Talaimannar, reported The Hindu.
Following reports of planting of mines in the waters off Neduntheevu, a traditional fishing ground as claimed by Rameswaram fishermen, they switched operations to between Talaimannar and Rameswaram.
“We are facing a crisis of livelihood. The topography of the sea, nature, unending conflict in Sri Lanka, almost nil catch in Indian waters off Rameswaram, environment, circumstances and others are against the fishermen. We don’t know who - governments of Sri Lanka, India, Tamil Nadu or LTTE – is to be blamed for the crisis,” says U. Arulandandam, Tamil Nadu’s representative of the Alliance for the Release of Innocent Fishermen (ARIF).
The fishermen hoped that the governments and other stakeholders would come forward to solve the problem, he said.
Drawing the union government's attention to the 'indiscriminate' firing by the Sri Lankan Navy that killed an Indian fisherman the day before, the chief minister asked the government 'to take up the matter with the Sri Lankan government,' a press statement said.
A fisherman from Pudokottai district of Tamil Nadu was killed when allegedly fired upon by the Sri Lankan Navy while fishing in the waters off the Dhanushkodi coast. Two fishermen survived the firing.
The state government has sanctioned Rs.100,000 as compensation to families of each of the fisherman killed.
At least 150 Indian fishermen have been killed in incidents of firing by the Sri Lankan Navy since the 1980s and nearly 300 have been injured.
Last year, the chief minister sought central intervention to protect Tamil Nadu's fishermen at least three times.
Sri Lanka is supposed to have mined the waters on its side of the international maritime border to prevent Indian fishermen from fishing in Lankan waters and to prevent refugees from northern Sri Lanka from crossing the Palk Strait.
Meanwhile, the Sri Lankan Navy further complicated the issue by claiming that the LTTE had attacked its patrol craft from an Indian boat.
The boat was sunk with rocket-propelled grenade fire, near the maritime boundary with India, military officials told Associated Press on condition of anonymity.
The attack reportedly claimed the lives of six sailors.
Though Sri Lanka has, in the past, expressed unhappiness over maritime violations by Indian fishermen, this is the first time it has complained to Indian authorities that an Indian trawler was used by the LTTE against its craft.
Considering the seriousness of the allegation, the Tamil Nadu Government, which acted swiftly to verify the claim, and several security agencies conducted high-level enquiries with the fishermen of Rameswaram, Jegadhapattinam, Pudukottai and Nagapattinam.
Though officials were convinced that no fisherman was involved in the shooting incident, the allegation has caused uneasiness among Indian fishermen, who fear this charge will be used to pose further threat to their livelihood and lives.
The Indian fishermen fear the Sri Lankan navy may take extreme measures if they found them in their territorial waters, particularly near Talaimannar, reported The Hindu.
Following reports of planting of mines in the waters off Neduntheevu, a traditional fishing ground as claimed by Rameswaram fishermen, they switched operations to between Talaimannar and Rameswaram.
“We are facing a crisis of livelihood. The topography of the sea, nature, unending conflict in Sri Lanka, almost nil catch in Indian waters off Rameswaram, environment, circumstances and others are against the fishermen. We don’t know who - governments of Sri Lanka, India, Tamil Nadu or LTTE – is to be blamed for the crisis,” says U. Arulandandam, Tamil Nadu’s representative of the Alliance for the Release of Innocent Fishermen (ARIF).
The fishermen hoped that the governments and other stakeholders would come forward to solve the problem, he said.
