Puducherry: Union Home Minister P
Chidambaram on Saturday asked fishermen and people residing in the
coastal belts to be always vigilant and alert as "terrorists,
traitors and mischief makers" would prefer to sneak into the
country through the coast.
Declaring open a Rs 4.5 crore housing colony constructed
by the Maharashtra government for 150 fishermen families at
Narambai, a tsunami hit village near here, Chidambaram
described people living along the coastal belt as "big guards
and vigilant surveillance personnel".
"No one none could enter coastal areas escaping the vigil
and sharp surveillance of coastal people. Even a small child
would ask for the bona fides of any stranger slipping into
your area and hence you should be more vigilant and
have full awareness," the Home Minister said.
He said terrorists carried out their attack in Mumbai by
sneaking through the coastal route.
Chidambaram said there would be infrastructure like
coastal police stations, "but people in coastal areas are the
great guards."
He asked authorities to provide mobile phones to one or
two persons in each coastal hamlet so that they would be in a
position to contact authorities and pass on information about
those found to be moving in suspicious circumstances in their
localities.
Chidambaram also declared open a cyclone relief centre and
community hall.
He said the Right to Education Act had been enforced from
April 1 and already the Right to work under the National Rural
Employment Guarantee Scheme had been brought into effect.
Very soon the Right to Food Security Act would be
enforced, he said.
He praised the initiatives taken by Puducherry government
in implementing various welfare schemes.
He also held a review meeting with Chief Minister V
Vaithilingam and his cabinet colleagues. Union Minister of
state for Planning and Parliamentary Affairs V Narayanasamy
also participated.
Later laying foundation for a Rs 282.17 crore
comprehensive underground sewarage project here, Chidambaram
said the 925 vacant posts of police personnel in the Union
Territory would be filled by the end of July.
Chidambaram said he had told the Chief Minister that posts
in teachers in colleges, Industrial Training Institutes and
police department could be filled by relaxing the ban order
relating to appointment of staff.
PTI
First Published: Saturday, April 10, 2010, 23:39