This was the moment six fishermen out at sea in the south of India heroically rescued a dugong calf from their net after it got tangled.

Footage shows the rescue in the sea near Jagadapattinam in Pudukkottai where the baby dugong is seen under the surface of the water trapped in the net.

The fishermen bring it aboard after releasing it from the net, then swiftly launch it back into the sea.

Their main concern was the endangered animal not being able to return to its mother who did not get trapped in their net.

One fisherman on board the vessel named Jagan said: “We worked frantically to release both of them quickly.

"We ensured that they breathed freely when they were trapped in the net and were not injured in any way.”

After returning to shore local forest officials lauded the group's effort in returning the animal.

They said: "Dugongs are endangered and there are less than 100 animals in this area.

"This incident shows our fishermen are becoming aware of the need to save the highly endangered species."

This was the heartwarming moment six fishermen took a dugong calf back to the sea and set it free to help unite it with her waiting mother.

K. Jagan, 24, and five of his colleagues were fishing in the sea at Jagadapattinam near Pudukottai in southern India when they inadvertently caught the mother and calf dugongs in their net.

Realising that they had accidentally caught endangered mammals, they rushed to the shore along with the trapped animals. They then cut the net carefully without causing any injury to them.

As the fishermen released them, the adult dugong swam away to the sea, but the calf was unable to follow it.

Fearing that it may get beached, the fishermen took the calf back to the sea on their boat and released it in deep water where its mother was swimming and keeping an eye on them.

Jagan said: “We worked frantically to release both of them quickly. We ensured that they breathed freely when they were trapped in the net and were not injured in any way.”

Local forest officials visited Jagan and team and appreciated their work.

“Dugongs are endangered and there are less than 100 animals in this area. This incident shows our fishermen are becoming aware of the need to save the highly endangered species,” an officer told local media.

-------

Jagan sound bite in Tamil (concluding video segment) - On January 4, a mother and calf dugongs were caught in our net. We released them and helped the calf join its mother.”