'Militants' nabbed at sea with huge cache of arms

Chennai, Feb 14 (UNI) The Indian Coast Guard rounded up a foreign vessel with a huge cache of arms and ammunition and arrested five persons, including three Sri Lankan nationals, suspected to be LTTE militants, 27 nautical miles off Kodiakarai in the Palk bay in Tamil Nadu early today.

Coast Guard sources said the Coast Guard ship 'Ramadevi' deployed on maritime security patrol in the Palk Bay picked up a radar contact. The vessel was tracked continously and intercepted.

The arrested were identified as Ramachandran (45), Siva Padmanabhan (31) hailing from Tamil Nadu and Saghayam (44), Arumugam (42) and Purushothaman (28) hailing from Sri Lanka, the sources said.

The sources said taking cognizance of various intelligence reports security in the area was enhanced. Maritime patrol had been stepped up and coast guard units were placed on high alert in recent months.

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