Two more Pak boats located near Porbandar

Porbandar: The Coast Guard on Friday intercepted two more suspicious boats near Porbandar, two days after four men blew their boat after being cornered by Indian ships, 365 kilometres away from the coast. According to reports, two ships have been dispatched to nail the suspicious boats.

According to sources, intelligence agency NTRO intercepted suspicious radio communication between the two boats, after which the Coast Guard sent the ships for the search operation.

This comes two days after four crew members of an explosive-laden boat were intercepted by the Indian Coast Guard near the India-Pakistan maritime boundary late December 31, 2014.

Sources in the Coast Guard said four persons were seen on the boat who disregarded all warnings by the Coast Guard ship to stop. Later, the fish boat crew hid themselves in the decks below and allegedly set the boat on fire, which resulted in an explosion and major fire on the boat.

The Coast Guard ships and aircraft spotted a suspicious fishing boat 365 km off Porbandar in the Arabian Sea, following intelligence inputs that one such boat from Keti Bandar near Karachi was planning some illicit transaction.

A Defence Ministry statement said the Coast Guard conducted the operation after intelligence reports said that a boat allegedly loaded with weapons was headed towards the Indian shores. “No doubt that the crew of the intercepted Pak boat were terrorists,” Coast Guard said.

“Four persons were seen on the boat who disregarded all warnings by the Coast Guard ship to stop and cooperate with investigation,” the Defence Ministry statement said adding, “Due to darkness, bad weather and strong winds, the boat and persons on board could not be saved or recovered. The boat burnt and sank in the same position in early hours of Jan 1.”

Coast Guard ships and aircraft are continuing operations in area to search for any possible survivor. The Guards and other security agencies are maintaining high vigil in maritime and coastal areas since last couple of months due to several inputs on threat from the sea.

The incident came a month after sixth anniversary of the Mumbai terror attack. Ten terrorists involved in the 2008 Mumbai terror attack had reached Mumbai in a boat from Karachi in Pakistan. The attack had left 166 people dead.

Meanwhile, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar complimented the Coast Guard for acting in a timely manner to avert a “possible danger.”

 “Indian Coast Guard has done its job exceedingly well. It did its job on time,” Parrikar said.