India
The fishermen had ventured into deep sea fishing on December 13 and their last contact was made by boat owner Chandrashekhar to his brother on December 16.
Malpe: A delegation of fishermen met prime minister Modi, requesting intensification of search operations for seven missing fishermen from Malpe in Udupi district.
Seven fishermen from the Malpe coast of Mangaluru went missing 25 days ago. PM Modi has assured the delegation that all necessary measures will be taken and that the fishermen will be brought back no matter which corner they are.
The Prime Minister promised to use all technical tools possible to find the missing fishermen. The delegation included fishing community leaders from Udupi, Yashpal Suvarna, Satish Kunder and others.
Thousands of fishermen came together to stage a protest on January 6 in Malpe after the fishermen weren't found. Fishing came to a standstill as fishermen pressed the government to intensify search operations. The protesters marched to National Highway 66 and blocked the road for three hours.
The seven fishermen ventured into deep sea fishing on December 13. Currently, Karnataka with the help of Maharashtra and Goa, Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and the Ministry of Defence (MoD) have commenced search operations.
Chandrashekhar, the boat owner called his brother Nithyananda over the phone and spoke to him on December 16. In his last call, Chandrashekhar is said to have told his brother that they were fishing near Goa, but were unable to establish contact with the fishermen on the coast. The boat was scheduled to return on December 26.
Following no contact from any fishermen on that boat, Nithyananda filed a missing complaint with the Coastal Security Police (CSP) Station, Malpe and Malpe Police Station on December 22.
The Coast Guard are currently using ships, hovercrafts, Dornier aircraft and helicopters and are carrying out sea-air search along with commercial ships and marine police boats.
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