Fishermen in Rameswaram, down south of Tamil Nadu, on Monday launched an indefinite strike to protest against the frequent arrests of the Tamil fishermen and seizure of their boats by the Sri Lankan navy. On February 23, at least 32 fishermen were apprehended by the Sri Lankan navy and at least four mechanised boats were seized for allegedly entering its waters. Since the beginning of 2025, a total of 119 people have been arrested and 16 boats seized by the Sri Lankan navy.
As part of the protest, 700 boats and 10,000 fishermen did not venture into the sea on Monday. According to the fishermen's associations, in Rameswaram, the strike would cost a revenue loss of Rs 1 crore a day, impacting more than 500 fishermen families in the region. The fishermen association in Rameshwaram decided to go on an indefinite strike, following a consultative meeting held in the Rameswaram fishing harbour on February 23. During the meeting, the associations also decided to halt fishing activities until the 32 fishermen detained by the Sri Lankan navy were released.
“Tamil Nadu fishermen have been arrested by the Sri Lankan Navy four times since the beginning of this year. We do not have any other option to ringback our fishermen, except to go on an indefinite strike,” said N. Devadoss, President of the Rameswaram Fishermen Association. He says that a total of 119 fishermen and 16 boats have been apprehended.
Devadoss told THE WEEK that the Indian government should convene a joint working group meeting comprising fishermen from both countries and find a permanent solution to the persisting problem.
“We want the Sri Lankan navy to please all our fishermen arrested by them and release the boats. They seize our boats and auction them. This is unacceptable, because if a fisherman loses his boat then his entire life is lost,” Devdoss explained.
Incidentally, the arrest of fishermen from Rameswaram, Pudukottai and Nagapattinam by the Sri Lankan navy has been a recurring factor as the fishermen cross the international waters while fishing in the Park Strait. The Indian fishermen use bottom trawlers which help them have a good catch at one stroke when they get into the sea. The fishermen in Northern Sri Lanka who use only fishing boats say that the bottom trawlers used by the Indian fisherfolk deplete the resources in the sea and they do not get any catch.
Though successive governments in Tamil Nadu have repeatedly represented the issue to the Centre, the arrest of fishermen continued. On February 23, soon after the arrest of 32 fishermen, Chief Minister M.K. Stalin wrote to External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar expressing concern over the growing number of arrests of fishermen from Rameswaram by the Sri Lankan navy.
