Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake visits Katchatheevu, says will protect country’s territory

Chennai: In an unprecedented move that aims at sending a clear message to India, Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake on Monday made an unscheduled visit to Katchatheevu, the uninhabited island just 285 acres sandwiched between two countries in the Palk Bay.  

Billed as an “inspection” by the President’s Secretariat, Dissanayake’s sudden visit to the island, which is at the centre of a row between fishermen of both countries, has caught everyone by surprise. Prior to his visit to Katchatheevu, where the President was seen taking a stroll along with the top brass of Sri Lankan Army, Dissanayake asserted that his government will not yield to external pressure over Katchatheevu, maintaining that it was his responsibility to safeguard Sri Lanka’s territory.. 

Katchatheevu was ceded to Sri Lanka by India as part of the 1974 Indo-Sri Lanka accord signed between India’s Indira Gandhi and Sri Lanka’s Srimao Bandaranayake.  

While Dissanayake’s visit is seen as a clear message to India that Sri Lanka will never go back on the issue of Katchatheevu, the development comes amid repeated calls by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin and other political leaders for retrieval of the island. Newbie politician actor Vijay had on August 21 jumped onto the bandwagon by demanding that Prime Minister Narendra Modi take steps to get the island back to India.  

Where is Katchatheevu? 

Katchatheevu is a tiny uninhabited island of just 285 acres sandwiched between India and Sri Lanka in the Palk Bay. Originally part of the territory held by the Rajah of Ramanathapuram, Katchatheevu was brought under the Madras Presidency during British rule.  

Traditionally, the island was used by fishermen from both India and Sri Lanka to dry their fishing nets. Fishermen from Rameswaram have always had an emotional attachment with Katchatheevu and St. Anthony’s church, the only structure on the island. 

What is the 1974 agreement? 

The 1974 agreement was signed essentially to determine the boundary line in the historic waters between India and Sri Lanka in the presence of Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and her Sri Lankan counterpart Sirimavo Bandaranayake in June 1974.  

While Katchatheevu was recognised as Sri Lanka territory, Article 5 of the agreement made it clear that Indian fishermen and pilgrims will enjoy access to visit the island as hitherto, and will not be required to obtain travel documents or visa from the island nation.  

This allowed fishermen from Rameswaram and rest of Tamil Nadu to fish near Katchatheevu. However, Katchatheevu was declared a ‘No Go Zone’ for Indians in 1976 after the two countries reached another agreement, in a blow to fishermen who have enjoyed access to the island for long. 

Letters of Exchange between India & SL in 1976 

However, the Foreign Secretaries of India and Sri Lanka exchanged letters on March 23, 1976 constituting an agreement on the Wadge Bank fisheries. While the 1974 agreement gave away Katchatheevu to Sri Lanka, the 1976 Exchange of Letters between the two countries drew the maritime boundary between India and Sri Lanka in the Gulf of Mannar and Bay of Bengal.  

This communication made it clear that the two countries will exercise sovereign rights over the living and non-living resources of their respective zones.  

“The fishing vessels and fishermen of India shall not engage in fishing in the historic waters, the territorial sea and the exclusive zone of Sri Lanka,” the Letters of Exchange said, adding that Sri Lankan fishermen were also not allowed to fish in the historical waters. 

With the agreement making it clear that Indian fishermen cannot fish near Katchatheevu or dry their nets, those crossing the invisible maritime border were allegedly attacked by the Sri Lankan Navy leading to a humanitarian problem in the Palk Bay.  

The only time when Indian fishermen are given access to Katchatheevu is to attend the annual festival at the church on the island.