Chief Secretary takes stock of coastal security

Ratnakar Gaikwad visited the Coast Guard headquarters following MiD DAY's article on the city's vulnerability to sea-borne attacks in the absence of police interceptors

Chief Secretary takes stock of coastal security

Ratnakar Gaikwad visited the Coast Guard headquarters following MiD DAY's article on the city's vulnerability to sea-borne attacks in the absence of police interceptors

Following MiD DAY's report on the city being vulnerable to sea-borne terror attacks during the monsoon yesterday ('No patrol boats to stop Qasabs this monsoon'), Maharashtra government's Chief Secretary Ratnakar Gaikwad visited the Coast Guard headquarters to assess the security arrangements.

A police interceptor and MiD DAY's report yesterday

His visit was prompted by the fact that 38 high-speed police interceptors have been withdrawn from high seas operations for the next three months and the state government will have to depend solely on the Coast Guard for patrolling close to the coast.

Mantralaya officials confirmed that Gaikwad held a high-level meeting with Coast Guard commander SPS Basra and other senior officers at the Worli headquarters.

The Ministry of Home Affairs had sanctioned the purchase of 166 high-speed interceptors to protect western states like Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Kerala after 26/11. 90-odd boats have been made available with six new boats being delivered to the states each month from various shipyards across the country.

The state government has also ordered 29 speedboats at a cost of Rs 250 crore. This is in addition to the 20 boats allotted to Maharashtra by the Centre. The present fleet cannot, however, operate in rough seas.

Naval Spokesperson Captain M Nambiar said the Navy and Coast Guard will continue to patrol the seas despite the monsoon current. He admitted, however, that their boats will not be as effective in the shallow waters close to the coast.

HI-TECH
The bulletproof speedboats mounted with light machine guns were procured by the district administration to patrol about 50 nautical miles on a daily basis.

These boats can touch a speed of 45 knots per hour (around 70 kmph) and can intercept any unfriendly boat. Each of these speedboat carries six crew members, including a captain and a police gunner.

Fitted with GPS navigation systems, these boats work in tandem with the navy and the coast guard.