Indian Coast Guard rescues 15 fishermen stranded at sea

The Indian Coast Guard has rescued 15 West Bengal fishermen, who were stranded on board a vessel in the midst of rough seas, an official said on Sunday.

ICG ship Vijaya, which was on operational deployment in northern Bay of Bengal, received a distress call from an Indian fishing boat 'Krishna Kanya' on Saturday night and immediately diverted its course for undertaking the rescue operation, he said.

Vijaya, under the command of DIG Vijay Singh, located the boat in time, the ICG official said.

A little delay could have led the vessel to drift "into foreign waters" or get grounded, the official said.

According to the fishermen, "their boat had lost her propellers in rough weather and drifted about 15 nautical miles in 24 hours due to strong winds and swell".

The ICG ship towed the crippled fishing boat to a safe location near the Kakdwip coast in Bengal, the official said.

Around 8.15 am on Sunday, the fishermen were safely shifted to other boats arranged by a fisheries association for onward passage to Kakdwip, he added.

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