Mumbai, Sept 17: The Indian Navy today said Maharashtra government should initiate steps to relocate at the earliest the slum dwellers on the encroached defence land along the coastline as they "posed a grave threat to the national security." Rear Admiral Nirmal Verma, Flag Officer, Maharashtra Division, told reporters here that the government has to relocate the slums, which have encroached on the defence land on the coastline, posing a threat to national security.

There were a few encroached pockets in Mumbai coastline that had become a haven for the anti-national elements to undertake their operations, he said. "We have taken up the issue with the Maharashtra government, which has acted upon it but with little success", Verma said.

Since the pockets have been a security hazard, more initiative was needed from the government, the naval officer added. Bureau Report