Goan coastal police detain Karnataka fishermen

You would have heard of fishermen being caught for crossing into the territorial waters of a neighbouring country by accident. But now a group of fishermen from Karnataka and 10 boats belonging to them have been detained by the Coastal Security Police (CSP) of Goa for allegedly crossing into the state's territorial waters.

According to fishermen bodies in Mangalore and Malpe, a fishing town in Udupi district, the fishermen — who had set sail from Mangalore and Malpe four days ago — were intercepted by a CSP patrol boat as they crossed Mazali in Karwar. The CSP personnel asked the fishermen to follow them to the Betul anchorage on the other side of the Mandovi river. The fishermen from Karnataka were asked to park there on charges of “crossing into Goa's territorial waters”.

A fisherman who came back to muster help from the Karnataka authorities at Malpe told DNA that they were detained despite their boats being well beyond the 12 nautical miles distance from the Goa's territorial waters. "When we docked, they treated us like criminals," he said. "A few influential fishermen bodies also brought chief minister Manohar Parrikar to the anchorage. CSP personnel, local police and fishermen depicted us in a bad light by making all kinds of allegations against us."

Fisheries department officials in Panaji told DNA that the local fishermen were objecting to big trawlers coming into Goan waters for fishing. Fishermen from other states have been warned not to come with big trawlers into these waters, but this time an entire flotilla of vessels crossed into Goa's territorial waters. According to the Indian Marine Act, every state has exclusive territorial waters up to 12 nautical miles into the sea and any intrusion is seen as violation of that Act and the local fishermen are entitled to complain to the CSP as well as to the state police.

The Karnataka State Fishermen Action Committee (KSFAC) is now sending a delegation to the Goan chief minister with an appeal to make the state boundaries more friendly for fishermen. “We have already warned fishermen not to violate the state territorial waters," KSFAC secretary Vasudeva Boloor said. "But in this case we have found the Goan CSP had taken our fishermen from outside the 12 nautical miles range — which is not permissible. They, too, are Indian fishermen and have the right to do fishing in the Exclusive Economic Zone.”

Goa director general of police Kishan Kumar confirmed that the south Goa police had detained the vessels. South Goa deputy superintendent Vaman Tari is investigating the incident.

Gangadhar Maddikeri, director, fisheries (marine), said state director of fisheries HS Veerappa Gowda had spoken to his counterpart in Goa, who assured that the fishermen were not hurt in any way and were allowed to go back to Malpe and Mangalore, but their vessels would remain in police custody till investigations were completed. "I feel the vessels will be released in a matter of days," Maddikeri said.