Fisherman murdered at sea laid to rest at Kumari

NAGERCOIL: Ajish Pink, a resident of Kanyakumari, who was one among the two shot dead by sailors of an Italian vessel near Kollam in Kerala on Wednesday, was laid to rest in his native village on Thursday.Ajish Pink, son of Antony Savier from Erayumanthurai, Poothurai in Kanyakumari district, was residing at Kollam district in Kerala and was engaged in deep sea fishing. On February 15, Ajish along with other members of his crew, were fishing in a mechanised boat some 60 nautical miles off the Kollam coast, when Sailors onboard a passing Italian vessel fired at their boat. In the attack Ajish and his fellow crew member Jelestin (22) of Kerala were killed.Ajish Pink is survived by his sisters, Abinaya Savier (18) and Ahuna Savier (15). He was the sole breadwinner of his family as his parents had passed away.As they didn’t have a home of their own, Ajish and his two sisters were staying at their relative’s house in Erayumanthurai.Fr Churchil of the South Asian Fishermen Fraternity, an organisation working for the well-being of fishermen in the district, urged the Centre to give `50 lakh as compensation to the families of the two deceased fishermen. This amount, he said, has to be given by the owners of the Italian ship. “To protect our fishermen, the Central government should regulate the movement of foreign vessels in our waters,” he said. Foreign vessels have repeatedly damaged the boats and fishing nets of our fishermen, he said, while adding, “To end this, the foreign vessels engaged in such activities should be traced and stringent legal action taken against them.”