Fishing boats seized for taking tourists to Ram Sethu
Fishing boats seized for taking tourists to Ram Sethu
Author: PTI
Publication: The Times of India
Date: January 29, 2008
URL: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Fishing_boats_seized_for_taking_tourists_to_Ram_Sethu/articleshow/2740439.cms
Four fishing boats have been seized by police
for allegedly ferrying pilgrims and foreign tourists to show them the Ram Sethu
or the Adams Bridge without proper permission.
The seizures were made on Monday following a
complaint by the Fisheries Department that the fishermen were trying to cash
in on the controversy surrounding Ram Sethu by ferrying tourists, including
foreigners, without permission and safety equipment, to show the mythological
bridge, believed to have ben built by Lord Rama, police said.
Various Hindu organisations have opposed dredging
in the Ram Sethu area, part of the Sethusamudram Ship Canal Project, aimed at
deepening the sea in the Palk Straits to create a navigable channel for ships.
A country boat was seized for transporting eight
foreigners from Dhanushkodi to mid-sea offering them to show the bridge.
A big mechanised boat was impounded for ferrying
27 students from Pamban to some islands in the Gulf of Mannar.
The other two boats had ferried some pilgrims
from Karnataka on Sunday.
The fishing licences of the boat owners had
been cancelled and diesel quota permits seized by the Fisheries Department.
