An abandoned speed boat was spotted three days ago drifting in the Bay of Bengal close to the coast near Ponnapudi Pathuru village in Vidavalur Mandal of SPSR Nellore district, Andhra Pradesh.

Other than smoked cigarettes and beedi butts, a can of water bearing a Sri Lankan sticker was found in the boat, indicating that the water was produced in Sri Lanka.

However, the police find the “India-Sri Lanka friendship” poster, which was found pasted on the boat, especially unsettling. The boat appears to be four months old and was fitted with a Yamaha Engine.

The abrupt sighting of the boat in the backdrop of the recent mayhem in Sri Lanka and warnings about the likely infiltration of terrorists into India led intelligence and other police wings, including the coastguard, to rush to the village to examine the boat and collect information on Tuesday.

The sighting also stirred up concern among security agencies as ISRO is all set to launch radar imaging earth observation satellite at 5.30 am on Wednesday from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, which happens to be situated on the same coastline.

According to Kovur Circle Inspector A.D. Siva Prasad, some fishermen from the village noticed the abandoned boat in the sea and brought it ashore after they managed to start its engine on May 18. They then removed the new Yamaha engine fitted to the boat and celebrated the acquisition with drinks. Alas, their joy did not last very long.

Source: Deccan Chronicle