Navy would strengthen security along the south-eastern coast in the wake of attacks on Indian fishermen allegedly by Sri Lankan Naval personnel, a senior Naval official said here on Friday.
“We will strengthen security along the south-eastern coast,” Chief Staff Officer (Operations) of Eastern Naval Command (Visakhapatnam) S.V. Dhokare told reporters after reviewing coastal security measures here.
The senior Naval official undertook the exercise a day after India lodged a strong protest with Sri Lanka over the killing of a Tamil Nadu fisherman allegedly by the Sri Lankan Navy.
Mr. Dhokare said the Navy had informed the Centre about the incident in which a fisherman from Jagathapattinam near Pudukottai was killed in alleged firing by Sri Lankan Naval personnel on Wednesday.
He said the government had taken up the issue with Sri Lanka.
Mr. Dhokare also made an aerial survey of the sea around Rameswaram along with senior Naval officers and visited the nearby Naval Air Station at Uchipuli and Naval Detachment here and held discussions with senior officials, including S. Agarwal, Commanding Officer of Naval Detachment.
The country had yesterday summoned Sri Lankan High Commissioner Prasad Kariyawasam and lodged a strong protest over the killing of the fisherman, saying such incidents have no “justification“.
New Delhi urged Sri Lankan authorities to “desist” from use of force against fishermen.
The incident also evoked a strong reaction from Tamil Nadu with Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi sending a telegram to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for strong action to end such “atrocities”.
The Sri Lankan envoy, however, denied involvement of his country’s Navy in the killing of the fisherman.
Meanwhile, Indian Coast Guard DIG and Commander of ICG ship ‘Vikram’ Raj said the fishermen crossed Indian territorial waters resulting in attacks by Sri Lankan Navy.
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