District secretary of the Tamil Nadu Mechanised Boat Fishermen Association B Jesuraja said that a 13 year old minor was among the six Tamil Nadu fishermen who were apprehended by the Sri Lankan navy yesterday (9).

Samson, one of the apprehended crew members, was only 13 years old, said U Arulanandam of the Alliance for Release of Innocent Fishermen. "All six fishermen were handed over to fisheries department in Mannar. We will know if they are going to be produced before the court on Wednesday," Arulanandam said.

Samson is the second minor to be apprehended by the Sri Lankan navy in the last one week. Maria Rathinam, a 15-year-old boy, was among 15 fishermen who were arrested by the Lankan navy last week. Arulanandam says 75 minors have been held by Lankan navy since 1996. "In one incident in 2009, seven fishermen died in a Sri Lankan prison. One of them was a boy aged 13 years," he recalled. "Spotting young boys in country boats is common across our coast but minors working in mechanised boats, is a unique situation in Rameswaram," he said.  (With inputs from The Times Of India)