The Sri Lankan government will not released any fishing trawlers seized from Tamil Nadu fishermen but plans to auction them off instead, the Daily FT quoted the director general of the department of fisheries and aquatic resources, Lal Fernando as saying.

“The Ministry has taken a firm decision not to release any trawler or mechanised boat caught violating the International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL) of Sri Lanka. We will release the Indian fishermen, but not their boats and trawlers,” Mr Fernando reportedly said.

“Though, we keep the trawlers in our custody to discourage them poaching into our waters, there is no reduction in the number of Indian fishermen poaching in Sri Lankan territorial waters,” he added.

Evidence that a torture cell existed in the Varani army camp was released by former Tamil National Alliance parliamentarian Suresh Premachandran on Monday.

The National University Teachers Association and Kandy association of Scholars and Professionals agreed to canvas representatives of political parties, religious leaders about the growing dangers posed by abolishing existing security measures.

Convening in Peradeniya the group, which was addressed by Sri Lanka’s former external affairs minister GL Peiris, committed to using social media to reach the youth and warn them of growing dangers posed by abolishing existing security measures, reports the Island.