Chennai: As part of modernising the Navy, the
southern peninsula will soon have Unmanned Aerial Vehicles in
Naval Air Stations in Tamil Nadu.
"We will have Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) soon, maybe
by next year. They will be based in the air stations in Tamil
Nadu," a senior Naval official told reporters on board INS
Shivalik here today.
Navy has two naval air stations in the state - INS Rajali
at Arakkonam and INS Parundu at Uchipuli.
The Navy had joined hands with the Coastal Security Group
of Tamil Nadu Police and Indian Coast Guard in educating
fishermen along the Tamil Nadu coast on the importance of
International Maritime Boundary Line, the official said.
"We have seven units in the state and they are educating
the fishermen in their regions. It looks like it`s working and
the incidents of crossing the border is coming down," he said.
On Indian Navy`s part in tackling sea piracy, he said the
force was part of the international co-ordination of navies
and has been given a stretch of 500 nautical miles in the Gulf
of Aden.
"In this convoy system, we tell them (international
co-ordination centre) when our ships will be on either of the
sides and that information will be given to the civilian ships
that are crossing the area. Usually, we take with us some 15
ships safely to the other side," the official said.
Earlier, the Navy conducted an exercise with six naval
warships - INS Ranjir, INS Ranjit, INS Ranvijay, INS Shivalik,
INS Kirch and INS Airavat, as part of the Navy Week
celebrations off the Chennai coast in the Bay of Bengal.
Co-ordinated by Rear Admiral H C S Bisht, Flag Officer
Commanding-in-Chief, Eastern Naval Command, the naval
exercises including jackstay and simulated gun firing that
lasted for almost the two-and-a-half hour sailing for 54 km.
"After 26/11, everybody is more sensitive to the threat
(through the sea) and so we have security forces exercises. We
are co-ordinating with all the agencies of the government,"
Rear Admiral H C S Bisht said.
He said the navy was expecting the indigenous aircraft
carrier which is now being built to join the force soon, apart
from INS Vikramaditya being built in Russia.
PTI
