Kolkata: In the wake of the 26/11 Mumbai
attack, a separate force would be raised to monitor coastal
areas, a top Naval officer said here on Tuesday.
"There will be a separate force, Sagar Prahari Bal, for
the purpose of increasing vigil in coastal areas of the
country, starting from Gujarat to West Bengal," Naval
officer-in-charge (West Bengal) Commodore Chandra Sekhar Azad
told a press conference.
The force will constitute 1,000 navy personnel, including
61 officers and 939 sailors and will have 95 Fast Interceptive
Craft (FIC), Azad said, adding that the induction for the
force will start from January next year.
When asked about the allocation for West Bengal, Azad
said, the state would get 150 navy personnel, including four
officers, and four FICs.
Azad said, "The new force will check every vessel above
300 tons...Most of the people recruited in this force will be
from coastal areas."
The state government has also decided to form a force in
coastal areas, which will co-ordinate between police and
fishermen, he said.
PTI
