India summons Sri Lanka's envoy after maritime collision

MUMBAI (Reuters) -- India summoned the Sri Lankan envoy on Thursday to protest following a collision between one of its fishing boats and a Sri Lankan naval vessel that killed a fisherman, with a second missing, authorities said.

The collision took place 5 nautical miles north of Katchatheevu, an island at the focus of contention between the neighbours, although India ceded it to Sri Lanka 50 years ago. Indian fishermen are barred from the waters around the island.

"The government of India has always emphasised the need to deal with issues pertaining to fishermen in a humane and humanitarian manner," India's foreign ministry said in a statement.

Sri Lanka did not want an escalation of the issue and was looking to work with India for a solution, Foreign Minister Ali Sabry told Reuters.

"We understand this is about livelihoods and lives," he added. "We would continue to talk to our Indian counterparts and find a permanent solution."

One of the four fishermen on the boat died and another was missing, while the rest were brought ashore, the foreign ministry added.

India ceded the island to Sri Lanka in 1974, followed by a pact barring its fishermen in 1976, but unhappiness over the transfer and the abridged rights have spurred two as yet unresolved Supreme Court challenges in the last 20 years.

The fishermen of both nations have occasionally violated the pact on the waters around the uninhabited island.