Puri: The Indian Coast Guard has planned to establish a remote operating station or radar station at Arakhakuda near Brahmagiri to boost coastal security.
According to sources, the radar station would enable the Coast Guard to keep tab on intrusion through sea routes.
The state government has set up four marine police stations on the district coast to beef up security. These stations are supposed to undertake patrolling within 12 nautical miles off the coast. However, shortage of personnel and mechanised boats has crippled these stations, sources said.
In this scenario, the Coast Guard has planned to establish the remote operating system by sourcing ultramodern radar from Denmark. Apart from that, the station will have automatic identification system to keep track on suspicious boats and vessels within 100 km off the coast.
The Coast Guard had earlier set up radar stations at Paradip and Gopalpur in state.
Sources, meanwhile, claimed that the Coast Guard had asked the district administration to provide land for the radar project. The administration had expressed its readiness to allocate an acre government land at Manikapatna mouza under Brahmagiri tehsil on lease for 25 years to Coast Guard for the radar project.
However, the Coast Guard has expressed its desire to take the land on lease for 99 years. “Issues related to land allocation may create hindrances in the implementation of the radar project of coastguard,” said a source.
