LAHORE: India handed over 10 Pakistani fishermen, who had been imprisoned in the country for five years, to authorities at the Wagah border on Saturday.
The fishermen, all from Thatta district in Sindh, were detained five years ago, for entering its territorial waters.
The freed Pakistani fishermen had been identified as Ibrahim, Ali Asghar, Rustam Ali, Abdul Majeed, Ali Muhammed son of Jodia, Ali Muhammed son of Ibrahim, Ali Hasan, Ali Asghar, Muhammed Samar and Shokat Ali.
Indian border authorities handed them over to the officials of the Edhi Foundation at the border after fulfilling essential legal procedures. The fishermen were later sent to Thatta via special vehicles, confirmed an Edhi Foundation spokesperson.
India and Pakistan routinely arrest fishermen on charges of entering each other’s waters as the maritime boundaries between the two countries were poorly defined, and many fishing boats lack technologies on locating their precise places.
Pakistani officials insisted that the Indian fishermen allegedly continued to intrude into the country’s marine-rich Indus delta region regardless of the livelihood of local fishermen.
Every year dozens of Indian and Pakistani fishermen are picked up in the Arabian Sea after straying across maritime borders.
They often languish in prison even after serving their sentences, as poor diplomatic relations between the bitter nuclear foes hamper the bureaucratic process.
On November 14, Pakistani authorities had released 20 Indian nationals, who were arrested for trespassing into Pakistani maritime boundaries, from Karachi’s Malir jail as a goodwill gesture.
