Call to rescue fishermen

CHENNAI: Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa on Wednesday urged Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to take immediate steps to rescue four fishermen from Tamil Nadu now in the custody of the Sri Lankan police.Making a suo motu statement in the State Assembly, the CM said that 13 fishermen from Rameswaram had ventured into sea on June 1 in three mechanised boats for fishing but had not returned in time. The Tamil Nadu government initiated efforts to trace the missing fishermen through the Coast Guard, Navy and Indian Air Force. The Indian High Commission in Sri Lanka had also been informed about this. On June 3, nine of the 13 fishermen returned to Rameswaram safely but the boat in which the other four fishermen -- Jayakumar, Prabhat, Sundar and Marimuthu from Rameswaram -- were travelling on had capsized mid-sea due to inclement weather. The fishermen then swam for eight hours and reached Nainatheevu in Sri Lanka. There they were produced before Kayts Court on June 6 and remanded to police custody till June 17.The CM sought the PM’s immediate intervention on  this issue and requested him to ensure that the Lankan government released the fishermen without delay and prolonged legal hurdles.