Kerala achieves a new milestone with Asia's largest naval academy

Thiruvananthapuram: Southern Indian state Kerala added another feather to its cap this week with the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh opening the Indian Naval Academy in Ezhimala near Kannur, considered to be the largest facility in Asia for training naval officers.

India's Defence Minister A.K. Antony, a former chief minister of Kerala, put the state's pride in perspective when he said at the inaugural held on Thursday that "from now on, all Indian naval officers joining the country's elite cadre would have stepped foot on Kerala's soil before joining the national naval force."

Kerala Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan, opposition leader Oommen Chandy and Indian naval chief Suresh Mehta were among the dignitaries attending the inauguration of the facility by the prime minister. Manmohan Singh pointed out that the country ought to be particularly vigilant about terror threats happening from the sea front.

Speaking only a month and a half after the deadly terror attacks in Mumbai, by terrorists who entered the country through the sea route, Singh said the navy, coast guard and intelligence services ought to work together to foil terrorists' plans. Singh said the terror threat existed not only from the Arabian Sea, but also from the Indian Ocean front.

India has a long coastline of over 7,000 km which makes it a formidable job to patrol the waters.

The prime minister's speech was twice interrupted by flying military aircraft, whose din drowned his speech.