BSF apprehended 3 Pakistani fishermen and seized 18 boats off Gujarat coast.
The Border Security Force (BSF) on Thursday apprehended three Pakistani fishermen and seized 18 boats from Harami Nala creek area along the Indo-Pak border in Gujarat's Kutch district.
The border guarding force said that during Thursday's operation, the patrolling unit fired two rounds in "self defence" and to stop the other fisherman on these boats from fleeing. However, many fishermen managed to escape.
Wednesday too the BSF had apprehended two Pakistani fishermen and seized three boats from the same area. "With this fresh operation today, a total of five Pakistani nationals have been held in the last two days while 21 of their boats were seized during patrolling in the creek area by the BSF," an official statement by the Gujarat Frontier of the BSF said on Thursday.
"Following the apprehension of two Pak fishermen along with three of their boats yesterday, BSF has continued its search operation in the Harami Nala creek area today, which resulted in the apprehension of three Pak nationals and 18 of their boats," said the release.
Those apprehended on Thursday were identified as Yusuf Ali (19), Shehajad Mohammad (20) and Imam Ali (20), all residents of Sindh province of the neighbouring country, the release said.
"The BSF patrolling unit had to fire two rounds in self defence during today's operation. Yesterday, too, the jawans had fired five rounds in self defence," the release said, adding that the search operation in that area is still on.
"As the Harami Nala is a marshy water channel, it is easy for the fisherman to escape to the other side of the border after abandoning their boats," BSF officials said.
The Harami Nala is a sluggish and shallow water channel, 22 km long and 1.5 km wide, within the territorial border of India. It is accessible from the Pakistani side through a canal or channel approximately two km long and 30 meters wide. However, it cannot be accessed easily from the Indian side as it is marshy, being part of the Rann of Kutch.
Given the sensitive nature of the area, even Indian fishermen are barred from fishing in the creek. However, Pakistani fishermen often venture into the Indian waters for a catch.