Sixty Gujarat fishermen and their ten boats were captured by Pakistan Maritime Security Agency (PMSA) on Thursday from Jakhau coast in Kutch. Manish Lodhari, secretary of National Fishworkers’ Forum (NFF) said that fishermen were apprehended by PMSA from near International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL) when they were fishing in Arabian Sea. “We have received the information that 60 fishermen on-board ten fishing boats were apprehended by the PMSA near Jakhau coast and have been taken to Karachi port,” Lodhari. Fishermen leaders claimed that there was a possibility that more fishermen and boats could have been captured by Pakistan agency. “We are awaiting for the confirmation from Pakistan counterpart about the exact number of fishermen and their boats captured from sea,” Lodhari added. As many as 439 Indian fishermen lodged in Pakistan prisons were released in two batches on December 25, 2016 and on January 2. Indian fishermen are apprehended on regular intervals by PMSA from the sea, claiming that they had entered in their waters after crossing IMBL. In December last year, at least 65 fishermen on board 13 boats were captured by the agency.
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