16 fishermen released from Diego Garcia

MADURAI: The aggrieved families of 16 Indian fishermen, who were detained by the Diego Garcia authorities on charges of cross-border fishing by accident in British Indian Ocean Territory on February 23, thanked the authorities and International Fishermen Development Trust (INFIDET) for their release on Friday evening.

The fishermen, six from the Thoothoor region of Kanyakumari district, Tamil Nadu, seven from Trivandrum, Kerala and three others from Kolkata ventured into the sea by a mechanized boat named ‘St. Mary’s bearing registration numbers –‘IND –TN -15 MM- 3793’ off Thengapattinam harbour, Kanyakumari district on February 9, said D. Regin, the boat owner from Thoothoor, Kanyakumari district on Saturday.

According to Regin, the netted fish along with the boat and fishing equipment were seized from the fishermen. They were also fined Rs 23 lakh after being produced before the court.

After learning this, the boat owner approached the INFIDET president Justin Antony to help release them. Antony forwarded memoranda to state and central government authorities and contacted higher officials citing that those 16 fishermen are sole breadwinners of their families. “It was not their intention to fish crossing the borders, but was an accident,” the boat owner said.

Citing these, the INFIDET requested the authorities to release the fishermen on humanitarian grounds from Diego Garcia. With the intervention of state and central governments, the penalty was also reduced to Rs 2 lakh. They are expected to Thoothoor in a few days.