Mangalore: Three Fishermen Rescued in ‘Daring Operation'
Pics by Dayanand Kukkaje/The Hindu
Mangalore, Jun 14: Coast Guard personnel rescued three fishermen who were stuck in the choppy waters off the city's coast in what was termed a “daring operation” by the authorities, given the weather conditions at noon on Sunday.
Shaji (38) and Rajan (32) from Kerala and Gunashekharan (50) from Tamil Nadu were adrift for nearly 48 hours after their tiny motorised fishing boat developed engine trouble.
The rescue operation was carried out from onboard the Fast Inshore Patrol Vessel, Annie Besant, by a 35-member crew of the Coast Guard led by Commandant K.L. Arun.
Following heavy rain and gusty winds, the crew had to negotiate swells that were over four metres high to get to the vessel, Coast Guard Commander for Karnataka Padam Shekhar Jha told The Hindu at the Coast Guard headquarters in Panambur.
Deputy Commissioner V. Ponnuraj said that the district administration was alerted about the vessel by people living along the beach in Ullal around 4.30 p.m. on Saturday. The message was immediately passed on to the Coast Guard, but Annie Besant was pressed into service nearly 20 hours after the first call. Some people from Ullal termed the response of the Coast Guard “lethargic”. Ullal TMC member Ashraf Bawa said that the Coast Guard swung into action only after pressure from U.T Khader, MLA, and Home Minister V.S. Acharya.
Terming the episode “sad”, Mr. Khader said the Coastal Security Police of the State Government did not have a boat for rescue operation.