The Coastal Security Police (CSP) and the local police should interact more with fishermen to understand the activities along the 320-km-long Karnataka coastline, said Additional Director-General of Police (Recruitment) and former Home Secretary Raghavendra H. Auradkar on Saturday.
He was speaking at the valedictory function of the two-day conference on ‘Coastal Security: Challenges and concerns’ at Mangalore University on Saturday. Mr. Auradkar said that by interacting with fishermen, the police will know the “in and out” of activities on and off the coast. This interaction forms a vital part of gathering human intelligence about illegal activities, and the CSP should take a lead in this, he said.
Shortage and quality
Though Karnataka was the first State to have a CSP wing in 1999, the objective behind forming it has not been fulfilled, he said. The Comptroller and Auditor General of India, in its report, has mentioned lack of manpower and poor intelligence gathering as among the four issues plaguing the unit. He said 40% of the posts in CSP were vacant.
“There is need for CSP personnel to be trained professionally in maritime policing,” he said.
Meanwhile, former director of shipping Deepak Shetty said there was a need for security agencies to engage with fishermen and involve them in guarding the Indian coastline from external threats. “The fishing community should get a sense of belonging,” he said, also urging college students to sensitise fishermen about security agencies.
