WEST-BENGAL
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will felicitate 95 fishermen from the state who were recently released from prison in Bangladesh, an official said. She will felicitate fishermen on Monday while she will be visiting Sagar Island in South 24 Parganas district to oversee the preparedness for the annual Gangasagar Mela. The official further said that there is a high probability that the fishermen will be given some compensation by the chief minister during the felicitation programme. It must be noted that the fishermen were arrested between October and November for intruding into Bangladesh's waters. An official said, "The chief minister will felicitate the fishermen who have been released by the Bangladesh government. Most of them are from Kakdwip while some are from Namkhana in the district." He further added that the district administration has already taken all initiatives and the stage has been set near the helipad in Sagar Island where the 95 fishermen were brought on Sunday evening. The 95 fishermen were repatriated to India on Sunday in a reciprocal release which was announced on Thursday. While Bangladesh repatriated 95 fishermen, India released 90. Earlier, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said mutual exchange of fishermen and their vessels has been worked out keeping in mind the primarily humanitarian and livelihood concerns of the fishing communities on both sides. "In recent months, several Indian fishermen have been arrested by Bangladesh authorities when they happened to inadvertently cross the International Maritime Boundary Line and entered Bangladesh waters," it said. The fishermen were handed over by the prisons to coast guards of respective countries for exchange. According to the earlier statement, two Bangladeshi fishing vessels detained in India and six Indian fishing boats detained in Bangladesh were also to be exchanged between the two Coast Guards. (With inputs from PTI) None
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