Search intensified for 8 missing fishermen: Atchannaidu

In an bid to intensify search for the missing eight fishermen off the Andhra Pradesh coast, two ships, two helicopters of the Indian Navy’s Eastern Naval Command and five ships of the Indian Coast Guard are involved in the search operations, Agriculture Minister K. Atchannaidu said. The fishermen began their voyage at Odalarevu fish landing centre in search of Tuna fish On August 3.

“The Indian Navy and Coast Guard have been asked to cover up to 300 nautical miles of range to trace the fishing boat – AP.MO 135 – which is in yellow colour. Meanwhile, we have alerted the governments of Odisha and West Bengal about the missing boat and the fishermen,” Mr. Atchannaidu said after meeting the families of the eight missing fishermen at the Odalarevu village on Wednesday,

In an interaction with the family members, Mr. Atchannaidu has consoled them stating that there were instances of the return of missing fishing boats even after 20 days in the State earlier.

“The State government is ready for any effort to save the lives of the eight fishermen,” said the Minister, who was accompanied by Amalapuram MP G. Harish Madhur.

Control room visit

Meanwhile, Inspector General of Police (Visakhapatnam Range) and Additional Director General, Coastal Security, Gopinath Jatti on Wednesday visited the control rooms of the Indian Navy and the Indian Coast Guard in Visakhapatnam to review the ongoing Search and Rescue (SAR) operations. The fishermen have not been in contact since August 7.

During his visit, the senior police official interacted with service officers to evaluate the multi-agency coordination, operational response, and real-time maritime tracking mechanisms deployed to locate the vessel. Authorities analysed live data feeds, aerial search grids, and surface asset movements coordinated across coastal networks.