32 Burmese Fishermen Arrested by Indian Coast Guard

32 Burmese fishermen were arrested and three fishing boats seized by the Indian Coast Guard as they were allegedly poaching in Indian waters, said a report of Kelara quoting an Indian official.

The report said that "altogether 32 Burmese poachers were apprehended by the Indian Coast Guard from the Andaman Sea."

The 32 Burmese fishermen were arrested during an anti-poaching operation by the Coast Guard on 8 July, 2011.

According to the report, the anti-poaching operation began when an Indian Coast Guard Domier aircraft sighted a suspicious contact operating west of Interview Island while on a routine night patrol on 7 July, 2011.

The information was immediately relayed to the Coast Guard ship Sagar, operating in the area. Acting on a tip-off, the ship closed in on the reported position and started an extensive search with the ship's helicopter and boarding party.

To further augment the search efforts, a Coast Guard Dorner sortie was launched again in the wee hours on 8 July, 2011. The extensive sea-air coordinated search resulted in apprehension of three Burmese boats with 32 poachers.

The seized boats and Burmese fishermen have been brought to Diglipur Island of the North Andaman Region and handed over to police for further legal action, the report added.

During the last six months, Indian Coast Guard ships have apprehended 15 Burmese fishing boats with 171 Burmese fishermen in various operations conducted by Coast Guard Regional Headquarters in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.