The Hindu Business Line : Goa Shipyard keen to partner Coast Guard

The public sector Goa Shipyard Ltd (GSL) has offered to partner with Indian Coast Guard (ICG) in its modernisation plans.At the commissioning of ICGS Subhadra Kumari Chauhan, a fast patrol vessel, at Vasco in South Goa on Friday, the Chairman and Managing Director of GSL, RAdm A.K. Handa, suggested that ICG could fund the plans and GSL, in turn, would commit to look after the maintenance needs of ICG vessels as a dedicated re-fit yard and deliver better quality ships.

MoU with Pakistan

The Director-General, Coast Guard, Dr Prabhakaran Paleri, who commissioned the vessel said, "We have signed an MoU recently with the Maritime Security Agency of Pakistan so that we can co-operate with each other in ensuring the safety of mariners and fishermen at sea and also fight together against law breakers and drug traffickers at sea".

Dr Paleri said, in its bid to counter the rising maritime crimes, ICG is actively co-operating with its counterparts in other countries.

New orders

While commending the efforts made by GSL, he said the proposal of future orders to GSL is under consideration and clearances of project will come through as per the laid down procedures, rules and policy at the headquarters.

In another ceremony held at GSL yard, ICGS Sankalp and ICGS Savitri Bai Phule were also launched.

RAdmS.M. Vadgaokar,guest of honour, said that GSL had been a trendsetter in the Defence ship-building sector taking up the challenge of building defence vessels on fixed costs basis and was becoming a forerunner in this regard compared to other Defence shipyards.

Both the vessels launched and one vessel commissioned were way ahead of the contractual schedules by GSL signifying the effective ERP enabled process in place along with its optimum and efficient workforce, officials of GSL said.