Bangalore, Chethan Kumar, Aug 15, 2013: The Karnataka Coastal Police, which is in the process of setting up four new police stations, including one each at Gangolli, Honnavar and Belekeri, is looking to set up nine jetties.
Presently, there are five police stations operating, one each at Mangalore, Karwar, Kumta, Bhatkal and Malpe, and four more are being planned under the second phase for which the Centre has already granted Rs 41 lakh.
Officials from the Karnataka Police said, “There is a need to develop one jetty each at these nine stations and for that the department is in talks with the departments of fisheries and inland water transport for land acquisition along the coast.”
Noting that jetties have great utility value for the police, one of them said the process of getting land had already begun.
Further, the 15 interceptor boats that help Karnataka police’s coastal patrolling, the department has said, are not conducive for rough sea patrolling, forcing the force to propose acquisition of newer boats from Goa Shipyard Limited.
In their annual performance report, tabled in the Assembly, the department has said: “There are 15 interceptor boats that the Coastal Police use presently. But the boats procured from the Centre are not conducive for rough sea patrolling.”
The idea is to have boats that can be used through the year and the new acquisitions will help the department achieve that.
These boats will be supplemented by the speed boats the force already operates and the all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), which are in the process of being inducted. Once inducted, the Karnataka State Police will be one of the first in India to operate ATVs to patrol the coast. These vehicles will help the coastal police exercise more efficiently their duties along the 320-km jurisdiction on Karnataka’s coast from Talapady in Dakshina Kannada district to Sadashivgad in Uttara Kannada district.
The department has already completed trials of ATVs from three manufacturers, including State-owned Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL). The other two are Mahindra and Mahindra and Polaris, a Bangalore-based company.
Initially, the force will have nine such vehicles, one for each station, but the numbers will eventually increase.
Noting that the department is in the process of consolidating the specification, a source said ATVs will also help land patrolling along the coasts, which is difficult to do with normal vehicles.
