Missing TN fishermen rescued by Myanmar Navy: Minister

At least nine Indian fishermen from Tamil Nadu who went missing nearly two months ago have been rescued by the Myanmar Navy and steps have been initiated for their return home, state Fisheries Minister D Jayakumar said on Monday.

The fishermen, who set sail on July 23 in a deep-sea fishing vessel from the city, were supposed to return by August 7 and multi-agency coordination including the Indian Navy and the Coast Guard was launched to search for them, he said.

The state government, through the External Affairs Ministry, requested the help of neighbouring Myanmar, Thailand and Bangladesh in their search, he said in a release.

Subsequently, the fishermen were located by the Myanmar Navy there on Monday morning and have been "safely rescued" and brought ashore.

The Indian mission in Myanmar has informed that the fishermen were doing well and provided with food and other facilities, the minister said.

"Due steps have been initiated by the Tamil Nadu government to bring back the fishermen home soon," he added.