Despite several alerts of a seaborne terror attack, Mumbai police is functioning with 50% manpower to patrol the coast

Mumbai's coastline continues to be vulnerable as the coastal police are functioning at less than half capacity, both in terms of manpower and equipment.

As some 700-odd positions lie vacant in the coastal security ranks, speedboats to patrol the waters are lying in disuse.


Six crew members are required to operate the new fast patrol boats

The acute deficiency of skilled sailors to manoeuvre the high-speed boats comes at a time when there are dozens of terror alerts about a sea-borne attack, similar to the 26/11 ambush by Lashkar-e-Taiba in 2008.

Reportedly, the reason for the dearth is poor pay.

Experienced sailors are reluctant to serve on board the sophisticated patrol boats because they are being offered lowly salaries.

From the available strength of 71 bulletproof speedboats, only 30 are operational. Another 24 are expected to arrive but there is no one to man them.

A total of 209 posts need to be filled for all the current and commissioned vessels to be deployed.

"The state government is sorting the issue. We are trying to recruit Level 2 captains from the Navy and Coast Guard.

The shipping and fishing vessels are offering better packages," said Deputy Commissioner of Police Kaisar Khalid, in-charge of Port Zone.

By conservative estimates, in all, there is a shortfall of 700-odd specialised personnel across various categories for the coast to be fully fortified against assaults and the entire fleet of speedboats to be functional.

Vacancies exist for the positions of captain, sarang, engine operator and khalasi or able-bodied seaman.

Inspector General of Police (Konkan Range) Param Bir Singh said the state government is studying proposals and will take a while before the recruitment is complete.

The shortage of specialised personnel has resulted in a situation where the police are hesitating to receive the delivery of high-speed boats manufactured in various shipyards across the country which are waiting to be deployed. If the delivery is accepted, the boats are likely to rust along Mumbai's shores.

Troubled waters

To secure the coasts, the state government is planning to bolster patrolling at district level.

Three bulletproof speedboats mounted with light machine guns and assorted weapons will be assigned to patrol about 50 nautical miles of the state's coast every day.
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The new vessels have the capability to touch 45 knots (around 70 km) to intercept any unfriendly boats in the waters. Each boat has a contingent of six crew members, including a captain and police gunner.

Additionally, the government has ordered 29 speedboats other than the 20 vessels provided to it by the Union government which will together cost the state exchequer around Rs 250 crore.

The speedboats will be stationed at jetties in all the districts and talukas along the state's coast, stretching from Dahanu in the north to Sindhudurg district bordering Goa in the south.


Experienced sailors are reluctant to serve on board the sophisticated patrol boats because they are being offered low salaries

All the vessels will be fitted with Global Positioning System (GPS) and work with the Navy and Coast Guard.

In the absence of skilled sailors, the district administrations too have commissioned several boats with local crew, mostly manned by fishermen, to assist the police to keep a watch on the coastal stretches.

To compensate for the paucity, district officials have embarked on a census exercise to gather details of the residents along the coastline.

This will enable the police to keep a tab on each and every resident in fishing villages, housing complexes and other establishments along the state's coast.

With the data, any suspicious person can be weeded out immediately, police sources pointed out.

A large number of possible landing sites have been brought under round-the-clock surveillance to avoid another 26/11-like attack. But a large fleet is required to accomplish the task, said a police officer.

Rs 250 cr
The amount the state will spend on 29 speedboats which have been ordered to save the coast

700
No of vacancies for specialised personnel to man the patrol boats

71
number of bulletproof boats that the state has currently