Altogether 17 fishermen from Bangladesh were yesterday arrested in South 24 Parganas district and their trawler impounded, after they entered Indian territory violating the maritime boundary, police said.

A group of Indian fishermen in Kultali area caught the Bangladeshis and handed them over to police, they said. The fishermen from Bangladesh claimed that their trawler had become inoperative because of a mechanical failure, and it floated across the maritime boundary owing to strong winds, a police officer said.