The Rameswaram Boat Association President Sesuraya has demanded that the Indian embassy officials in Sri Lanka should not participate in the Kachadhivu festival ignoring the sentiments of the people of Tamil Nadu.
The President said they were boycotting the festival as five of the fishermen who were arrested for engaging in cross-border fishing in Sri Lankan waters have been jailed with severe warnings, while the livelihood of the fishermen's families is in question.
“We are saddened to know that the officials of the Indian Embassy in Sri Lanka are preparing to go to the Kachathivu festival, which is held only with the participation of Sri Lankan pilgrims,” he said.
Respecting the sentiments of the fishermen of Tamil Nadu, the Indian Embassy in Sri Lanka should also boycott the festival on humanitarian grounds, he said.
At the same time, he said that the Sri Lankan government, which refuses to show humanity by freeing 5 fishermen, should not pay the expenses for the Kachathivu festival from the tax money of the Indian people, he added.
The Cyclonic Storm “Ditwah” moved further north from Trincomalee today evening leaving a trail of destruction including more than 90 deaths, over 100 missing and tens of thousands displaced, officials said.
A third rescue attempt to save 28 people trapped on the rooftop of a farm building in Vithikuliya, Nikaweratiya, has failed due to the dangerous water surge from the Deduru Oya.
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All passengers of a bus swept away by rising floodwaters on the Kalawewa Bridge along the Anuradhapura–Puttalam road have been rescued, Navy Commander Vice Admiral Kanchana Banagoda said.
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