Ahead of talks on the fisheries issue with India on December 30, Minister Douglas Devananda said he would seek views of northern fishermen on their grievances to be raised. 

The Minister said he intended to raise the issue of Indian fishermen poaching in Sri Lankan waters. He told a recent news conference in Vavuniya that northern fishers were protesting over the years.  He charged that Indian fishermen cross the International Maritime Boundary Line and engage in fishing even damaging maritime ecology. The Minister said Sri Lankan fishermen feel uncertain about their fisheries industry in the future. 

Sri Lanka Navy apprehended a group of Indian fishermen who crossed the maritime boundary line. Afterwards, India requested Sri Lanka to release them. 

The Minister asked northern fishermen not to take the law into their own hands until a permanent solution is found.