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Goa to raise marine commando squad, says minister
In a bid to counter sea-borne terror, Goa police is in the process of setting up a marine commando squad, state Home Minister Ravi Naik said on Thursday.
- IANS
- Published: 22:48 July 2, 2009
Panaji: In a bid to counter sea-borne terror, Goa police is in the process of setting up a marine commando squad, state Home Minister Ravi Naik said on Thursday.
Naik told reporters at the police headquarters in Panaji that the marine commando squad was one of the ways in which terror strikes emanating from the sea like the 26/11 attacks in Mumbai could be thwarted.
"We are starting the force soon. We have called for volunteers who will be trained by special marine agencies like the Coast Guard and the Indian Navy for this specialised task. Goa keeps receiving terror threats like the one we received just a couple of days ago. We need a proper response mechanism in place," Naik said, adding that a 365-day coastal alert was now emerging as a necessary scenario for the state.
Police officials said that the marine commandos would have high speed interceptor boats, which would be used to criss-cross the shore off Goa and the state's internal waterways.
"We have already received two boats from the Goa Shipyard Limited and nine more fast speed interceptor boats will be delivered to us this year," a senior police official said.
The announcement of the marine commando squad comes on the heels of the inability of Goa police to start an anti-terror wing, with the proposal being stonewalled by the finance department, for paucity of funds.
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