Stranded fishermen want to be rescued

Six fishermen from Kanniyakumari district, who are stranded in Iran, have urged the government to take steps to repatriate them in the Indian naval ship so that they can leave Iran shortly and reach VOC Port in Thoothukudi on July 2.

In the audio message sent by one of the stranded fishermen, who are identified as M. Amarsan, S. John Gadin, M. Maria Kimslin, A. John Kennedy and Risin Mon, all from Colachel and K. Ansari of Vallavilai, they urged the State and the Union Governments to ensure their safe release from the clutches of their sponsor, who neither gives them their salary for the past four months nor allows them to board the Indian naval ship to be operated shortly from Iran to India under operation ‘Samudra Setu’ of Vande Bharat Mission.

“Even though the sponsor refused to give us our salary for the past four months, we requested him to allow us to go home since we are in a very pathetic condition. The sponsor, an Iranian, who initially agreed to release us, refuses to do so now. So, the government should take steps to rescue us from the sponsor and ensure our safe return to India,” they said.