Maharashtra government zeroes in on coastal security training spots

MUMBAI: Maharashtra government has identified three locations for setting up coastal policing training centres, Home Minister R R Patil informed the Legislative Assembly here today.

A committee of experts from Centre will inspect these sites next month, the minister said, replying to a calling attention notice moved by Shiv Sena's Vinod Ghosalkar and others.

Ghosalkar wanted to know why the government was delaying coastal security despite heavy loss of life in 26/11 terror attacks, where terrorists had landed through a coastal route.

The security of state's 700-km coastline was being compromised and the government had failed to implement the coastal security plan, five years after mooting the idea, he said.

The Centre had asked the state to provide free of cost 200-250 acres of land for the training academy. "We have identified sites in Bankot (Ratnagiri) and Palghar (Thane) on the eastern and western coasts," Patil said. He, however, did not specify the third location.