Chennai, Nov 5 (PTI) Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay on Thursday expressed grief over the death of fishermen whose boat capsized off the Andhra Pradesh coast during the recent Cyclone Murasu, and announced a relief of Rs 7 lakh each for the families of the deceased.
A group of nine fishermen ventured into the sea from the Chennai fishing harbour on a mechanised boat on October 29. Following weather warnings, they had safely docked at the Nizampatnam fishing harbour in Andhra Pradesh.
However, on the night of November 2, the boat headed towards Ramayapatnam harbour when its engine reportedly failed mid-sea. The stranded fishermen communicated their situation to another boat via wireless early on November 3, after which all contact was lost.
Coordinated search operations were subsequently launched involving fishing boats from Chennai and Andhra Pradesh, along with Indian Coast Guard vessels. According to Andhra officials, their boat had capsized.
A Tamil Nadu government press release said three bodies were recovered along the Kothapatnam coast in Prakasam district of Andhra Pradesh. They dead were identified as S Mohan (47), A Murugan (48), and C Vijayakanth (44). Two more bodies have been recovered, and efforts are underway to identify them, while the search for the remaining missing fishermen has been expedited upon the chief minister's orders.
In the press statement, condoling the deaths, Vijay announced a financial assistance of Rs 7 lakh to the bereaved families, out of which Rs 2 lakh will be disbursed immediately.
The state government will also bear the expenses to bring the mortal remains of the deceased back to Tamil Nadu to be handed over to their respective families.
