The Hindu Business Line : Kochi port beefs up security measures

Kochi, Dec. 5 Cochin Port Trust has beefed up the security apparatus both on its waterfront and on the land in the wake of the growing all-round threat perceptions.

As part of the arrangements to augment security, the port has acquired two new high-speed boats exclusively for patrolling its waterfront while the other security measures were being taken care of by a radar-based Vessel Traffic Management System (VTMS) installed on land.

The Port Chairman, Mr N. Ramachandran, said that security in the port areas has been strengthened well before the November 26 Mumbai terrorist attacks.

Both these systems were well co-ordinated, he said.

The VTMS, though installed to provide navigational safety to big and small vessels including fishing boats entering and operating within the port limits, was capable of detecting all types of crafts for inspection and interception.

“This is a major value addition for security as far as Kochi is concerned,” he said, and added that the speedboats were imported from the US at a cost of Rs 1 crore.

“We are leaving no chances for any type of hindrance to the port activities,” the IPS-cadre Chairman said.

The port had also installed a biometric identification and access control system for employee and port users. There are plans to extend this facility to truck drivers in view of the security arrangements, he added.

However, the Chairman said the manpower in Kochi needed to be well trained in order to achieve a foolproof security system. This would cause additional capital involvement and the Centre was being approached to meet additional outlay.

The high-powered committee set up the Shipping Ministry to review security preparations in major ports and shipyards had recommended against passing on additional security costs to the trade and making Indian maritime trade less competitive.

Mr Ramachandran said that there were also plans to set up a specialised CISF marine security wing on the lines of the existing airport security unit, which was capable of handling any emergency.

CISF men trained in these security systems should be retained for longer periods and exempted from periodic transfers to from the port sector as their training involved long drawn exercises.

The headquarters of the Southern Naval Command and the Coast Guard station for Kerala and Lakshadweep, within the peripheries of the port, also added to the security strength in the area.