The Hindu Business Line : Dedicated berth for Coast Guard at Kakinada cleared

Kakinada, April 15 The Indian Coast Guard will soon have a berth for its exclusive use at the deepwater port here and the State Government has cleared the proposal, according to the Deputy Inspector-General of the ICG, Chennai, Mr K.P.S. Raghuvanshi.

He told reporters here on Tuesday that the MoU would be signed with the State Government and Kakinada Seaports Ltd (KSPL) initially for a period of five or six years.

The berth would be of great help to the ICG in better monitoring of maritime activities along the Andhra Pradesh coast.

Strengthening security

The security would also be strengthened, as Reliance, the ONGC, Cairn Energy and Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation were exploring for oil and gas in the vicinity of Kakinada in the Krishna-Godavari basin, he explained.

The Kakinada station of the ICG would soon have a patrol vessel of its own, presently under construction at Surat. Till now, vessels were being requisitioned from Visakhapatnam on requirement.

‘Follow-up steps needed’

The Union Minister of State for Defence, Mr M.M. Pallam Raju, said the State Government should take the necessary follow-up steps to enable the ICG to have a dedicated berth at the port.

The Commanding Officer of the ICG here, Mr. S.K Nath, met the State Government officials to expedite the matter.

The Coast Guard station here was inaugurated in November 2006, by the Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister, Dr Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy.

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Dedicated berth for Coast Guard at Kakinada cleared