Fishermen to don white hat, offer to help Indian Coast Guard

India's fisherman community has offered to end industrial fishing at night that often provides cover for smugglers and terrorists to infiltrate along the country's 8,000-kilometre-long vulnerable coastline that was exposed in 2008 after a seaborne assault by Pakistani gunmen on Mumbai.

The move comes against the backdrop of this month's deadly terror attack at a caf in Bangladesh that underscored growing radicalisation in India's treacherous neighbourhood.

STOP BOTTOM-TRAWLING, SAY FISHERMEN

Members of the National Fishworkers' Forum (NFF), an apex federation of fishermen's organisations in the country, are all set to submit a memorandum to Indian Coast Guard authorities, asking them to stop all kinds of bottom-trawling in the sea at night.

India has shored up security in its coastal areas, particularly around vital installations such as nuclearpower stations, ports and defence facilities, following the deadly 26/11 attacks that killed over 160 people. Infrastructure to upgrade security in the seas has also got a push. According to NFF national convener Debashis Shyamal, the communication will be submitted this week to the Coast Guard at Haldia in West Bengal, in which they will mention the key security issue.

WOULD HELP REDUCE INFILTRATION

"The fish workers' forum in Bengal (Dakshinbanga Matsyajibi Forum) will submit the memorandum to the Indian Coast Guard asking to stop bottom-trawling or bull-trawling fishing activities in the sea at night. If that can be imposed successfully there will be no movement of trawlers in the sea at night," he said.

Shyamal said the traditional fishermen would also give a proposal that they will not venture out to sea and engage in any trawling activities during the night. "If all the fishing trawlers in the sea are afloat but remain in a static position at night it would help security agencies to prevent any infiltration activities or suspicious movement from outside territories. We have already stopped activities from our end too," he added.

MOVE WILL BE WELCOMED: DEFENCE OFFICIAL

Ahead of the 2008 Mumbai attacks, an elderly harbour official had noticed the unusual behaviour of the 10 terrorists who had sailed in and questioned their actions, but he did not report the situation and was told by the men to mind his own business, as per reports.

Sources in the security agencies said indigenous people provide the best vigilance against foreign intrusion as was also proved in the case of Kargil in 1999 where local shepherds first spotted the Pakistani attackers and reported this to the defence forces. "It is definitely a welcome move. If they submit any such memorandum we, as an enforcement agency, will certainly take serious note of that," commandant IJ Singh, spokesperson of Indian Coast Guard, told MAIL TODAy on Wednesday.

NEIGHBORING PARTS WITH BANGLADESH ON HIGH ALERT

West Bengal, along with Tripura, Meghalaya, Assam and Mizoram that share an international border with Bangladesh, was put on "high alert" after the Dhaka terror attack in which 28 people, including six terrorists and two policemen, were killed. India's coastline presents a variety of security concerns, such as smuggling of arms and explosives, infiltration and other criminal activities. Absence of physical barriers and presence of vital industrial and defence installations near the coasts also enhance their vulnerability to illegal cross-border activities.

The administrations of all the districts bordering Bangladesh have been asked to remain on high alert, in particular three districts- East Midnapore, South 24-Parganas and North 24-Parganas- that are connected with the neighbouring country by rivers and the Bay of Bengal. These three districts have over 156 sq km of vast coastline manned by only six coastal police stations which are inept to tackle any emergency.

India and Bangladesh share a 4,095-km border, of which 180 km is riverine. Under the first phase of a coastal security scheme, six police stations have come up in Digha Mohana, Talpatighat, Haldibari (Sunderbans), Maipith, Frezerganj and Hemnagar. The process is on for setting up eight more coastal police stations under the second phase at areas such as Junput, Mandarmoni, Nayachar, Gangasagar, Gobardhanpur, Jharkali, Harwood Point and Diamond Harbour.

FISHERMEN, EYES OF THE SEA

"These coastal police stations are in very bad shape and not ready to handle any coastal patrolling activity even. They don't have any mechanised patrolling boat to keep night vigils in the sea," police sources said. The fishermen of India have for centuries been the sentinels of the coast, preventing intruders by identifying strangers and foreign vessels that sneak into our waters. Post 26/11, some community interactions were also initiated by the Coast Guard at various landing stations, in a bid to sensitise local fishermen about strengthening national security.

Shyamal said that fishermen from Maharashtra, Goa and Tamil Nadu, which share similar transborder coastline with Pakistan and Sri Lanka, respectively, have also supported the decision and are likely to join the move. "If any security issue happens traditional fishermen, who depend on fishing activities in coastal zones, are generally the first ones to suffer due to the drills. So, we have resolved to facilitate the national coastal agencies with the idea of stopping bottom-trawling (or bull-trawling) activities at night," he pointed out.

THEY WANT COMMUNICATION EQUIPMENT TO INFORM OFFICIALS

Sources said in order to facilitate and improve the efficiency of vigilance, the fishermen also propose that they should be trained and provided with communication equipment to stay in touch with the naval, coastguard and other security agencies.