Coast Guard rescues 7 fishermen drifting in Bay of Bengal

Seven fishermen drifting in the sea on a trawler for five days were rescued by the Indian Coast Guard today, 54 nautical miles east of Paradip in Bay of Bengal.
"Braving heavy seas, ICGS Sucheta Kripalani rescued the precious lives aboard boat Nirman-5," Coast Guard regional commander (north east) K S Sheoran said.
Acting on an SOS call from the Trawlers' Association of Paradip in Odisha, an extensive search and rescue operation was launched using a ship and aircrafts, Sheoran said here.
Coast Guard ship Sucheta Kripalani, which was diverted to the area for the operation, was sent to rescue the seven persons after a Dornier aircraft of the Coast Guard located the boat about 65 nautical miles from Paradip coast.

The boat had gone to sea on June 30 for fishing, but was rendered adrift following a technical snag in its engine, the sources said.
The boat was also towed by the ICG ship back to Paradip.