India, Sept. 7 -- The Sri Lanka Navy (SLN), during its routine maritime surveillance and patrol operations, on Saturday provided urgent humanitarian assistance to a group of individuals, found stranded on a remote sandbank off Thalaimannar.Disaster relief supplies

The group included including four women, two men and five children.

The group was detected by Naval personnel during early morning patrols. Upon identifying the distressed individuals, the Navy immediately provided them with safe drinking water, food and temporary shelter.

Preliminary inquiries revealed that the group had travelled from Rameshwaram, India and had reportedly been abandoned in the area in connection with an alleged human smuggling operation.

The individuals ar...