Fifty-seven Indian fishing boats, released by Pakistan yesterday, arrived at Porbandar here tonight.
Indian Coast Guard (ICG) ship Vijit and Rajratan entered the Porbandar harbour escorting 57 Indian Fishing Boats (IFBs) that were returned by Pakistan authorities on Sunday as a good-will gesture near Indo-Pak International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL), an ICG rlease said.
"The 57 IFBs were brought back under tow by equal number of hired trawlers that sailed from Porbandar under the company of ICG ships late in the nights of Friday," the release said.
"The IFBs that are now returned were earlier apprehended by Pakistan Maritime Security Agencies (PMSA) in year 2013-2014 while they strayed into Pak waters. These IFBs are registered in Gujarat and Daman and Diu," it further said.
Inspector General Kuldip Singh Sheoran Commander Coast Guard Region (North-West) said, "This kind of repatriation has happened after a gap of 11 years. The last such repatriation took place in the year 2004."
However, around 800 Indian fishing boats captured by PMSA are still in the custody of Pakistan.
