The Sri Lankan Navy on Sunday, February 15, arrested 25 fishermen from Tamil Nadu for allegedly crossing the International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL) and fishing in Sri Lankan waters.
The fishermen, from Karaikal in Puducherry, Nagappattinam and Mayiladuthurai, had ventured out in two mechanised boats. They were detained on Sunday night and taken to the Kankesanthurai Naval Camp for questioning.
According to a report in The New Indian Express, the first boat had left Karaikal port on February 12 with 11 fishermen on board and was intercepted around midnight on Sunday. Of them, seven are from Nambiyar Nagar fishing village in Nagappattinam, two are from Mayiladuthurai and two are from Karaikal.
The second boat, carrying 14 fishermen, set off from Karaikal early on Sunday morning and was detained at around 11 pm. The crew includes five fishermen from Akkaraipettai and Samanthanpettai in Nagappattinam, one from Mayiladuthurai and eight from Karaikal.
According to the Ministry of External Affairs, a total of 332 Indian fishermen were in detention in various countries as of November 27, 2025. Responding to a question in the Lok Sabha by A Raja of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), Minister of State for External Affairs Kirit Vardhan Singh said that 66 fishermen were detained by Sri Lanka (18 under trial and 48 serving sentences), 200 in Pakistan, 70 in Bangladesh and two in Iraq.
The IMBL between India and Sri Lanka was established through an agreement in 1974 after consultations with the then Tamil Nadu government. A subsequent agreement in 1976, formalised through an exchange of letters between the two governments, stipulated that Indian fishing vessels and fishermen shall not engage in fishing in the historic waters, territorial sea or exclusive economic zone of Sri Lanka, the minister said in his reply.