Coast Guard officials urged fishermen to be involved in intelligence-gathering network of the officials.
The officials were speaking at an interactive meeting between officials of the Coast Guards and the Karnataka Coastal Security Police (CSP) and the fishermen in Ullal here on Tuesday. They said that fishermen should act like the “eyes and ears” of the officials.
The officials said that if the fishermen saw any suspicious activity, person or boat, they could contact the authorities using toll-free numbers (1554 and 1093) and inform the officials in Kannada, English or Hindi.
The officials told the fishermen to follow certain guidelines for safety and security. All fishing boats must carry original documents, they said. Smart cards would be issued on a priority basis to them. They must keep them with their identity cards and the boat's papers in original. They were told to go fishing in groups, and to ensure that the date of registration of their ships is done online. Boat owners should stay by the side of a boat in distress till the latter gets help, they said. They were told not to venture in single boats but always in a group.
“Combined effort is needed for security. If you see a new person taking a house on rent, ask for his identity card, let the local police know,” they said.
The officials said that the fishermen were “very brave” and that they should join the Coast Guard in large numbers.
“You will get a good salary, uniform, and get an opportunity to serve the country,” they said. A person with SSLC, PUC, or degree can join, in different cadres. The interview is held twice a year and the advertisements appear in newspapers, including Employment News . The number of people joining from Karnataka is extremely low. Fishermen know more about the sea than us,” they said.
Alert system
The officials told the fishermen how to use the distress alert systems (DATS) effectively. They said that if the DAT transmitter was found unattended, the matter should be reported to the nearest Coast Guard or the local police.
